


Quarantine Adoptions

by Ourfandomcrazyuniverse



Category: Black Friday - Team StarKid, Hatchetfield cinematic universe, Starkid, Team Starkid - Fandom, The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals - Team StarKid
Genre: Father Figure, Found Family, Once again Bill is adopting a bunch of stray kids, Other, alice and Ethan are my brotp I love them sm
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:13:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 27,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26480050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ourfandomcrazyuniverse/pseuds/Ourfandomcrazyuniverse
Summary: Alice is so happy to at least be on lockdown with her dad. But the day they’re all getting prepared to not see one another again she worries about her friends and honestly? So does Bill. Maybe they can do something about that
Relationships: Alice & Bill (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals), Alice & Ethan Green, Alice/Deb (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals), Bill & Deb (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals), Hannah Foster & Lex Foster, Hannah foster & bill, Lex Foster/Ethan Green, ethan green & bill, lex foster & bill
Comments: 21
Kudos: 48





	1. Chapter 1

Well, the day was here. 

Alice had been making last minute excuses to stay with her dad for weeks now. “Oh we’ve got a really big project at school”, “Sorry mom it’s my friends birthday”, “I’ve gotta support dad in his charity fundraiser at work!” And now finally, the lockdown was being put into place, as everyone was preparing for, and with a little procrastination, it was simply too late for Alice to stay at home with her mom.

She was gonna be quarantined with her dad. And it was gonna be great. 

Of course there’d be arguments, there always were with her dad, but that was mainly before he realised she wanted him to have majority custody, and before the whole apocalypse thing. Now he knew, they agreed to always talk about what was on their minds, and even though Alice didn’t always strictly adhere to it, and she felt bad when she didn’t, it made life so much easier. Plus oh my goodness she’d prefer to be with her dad than her mom. Weeks or even months of living together with no escape? Her anxiety would be through the roof and her mom didn’t even believe it was an actual mental health condition. Even though she’d seen her daughter and husband suffer through it. Not to mention she’d probably accidentally out herself, whether it was months of her brain being on low power mode, borne of rage, missing Deb, or something else, and there’d be no escape from that.

Alice was on the phone now. She knew it was the right thing to do, to call instead of text, but luckily she had the excuse of needing to prepare, and she knew her mom would too, to get the conversation over with quickly.

“Okay I’m sorry mom, I gotta go. Dad needs help washing the groceries, otherwise we’re not gonna have time to say goodbye to people on the island.”

In fact her dad was still in work, and she’d already hugged and kissed Deb for the last time for a while, when Deb had to go to get her own shopping and walk it back. 

“Okay well… Goddamnit Alison, pardon my french, this is why I kept telling you to visit before!”

“I know mom, you’ve told me, I’m sorry.” Alice was picking at her nails, but apart from that, hyper focused on this conversation. At least the sigh from her mom she knew all too well meant it was over.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you when I next can honey.”

Alice nodded, though her mom couldn’t see.

“I love you. Will you please stay safe? You and your father. For me?”

Okay Alice nearly teared up at that bit, maybe it’s because she could hear her mom’s throat closing up a little too. Even though she was on edge around her mom half the time, she still loved her. “We will, stay safe too mom alright? I love you. I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“Okay sweetie. You go help your father clean now. Love you.”

Alice dropped her phone and just had to drop her own body onto her bed, feeling the sun hit her skin through the open window. It wasn’t fair it was sunny today, but at least the breeze was a reminder it wasn’t exactly summer. Wow this could last way past summer. Thinking she could close the window but deciding against it, Alice just lay against her bed, arms sprawled, for a good few seconds with her eyes closed. 

That’s when she heard the very quiet, but clear now, sound of her ladder being stolen. Well, that could only mean one thing...

And seconds later her pink curtains were being moved out of the way, and choked on as the wind changed course, as Ethan Green appeared, smirking with his hands laid upon her window sill. “Hey Ali Cat. Takin a nap?”

“Ethan, what’re you doing here?” She asked instead of answering, getting up and walking over to her window, but for a second stalling, should she stay 2 metres away now? No, this was her final day she reminded herself, but Ethan spoke first. “What? Not even gonna say goodbye? Deb texted me, she said you met her this morning. Weren’t even gonna say bye to your bff?” Avoiding answering to ask his own question just like her, Ethan jutted his lip out, as Alice moved closer.

“Of course I was, you were my next destination.”

Ethan perked up at that, shining his teeth.

“Ethan, you know you won’t be able to come inside tomorrow, right?” Alice pointed to where he rested his arms against her sill, waiting for him to jump inside like he sometimes did, especially if he was drunk or high. God the amount of times she thought she was being robbed, even in broad daylight. 

Ethan just stretched his elbows across the counter further, happily planting himself there. He tapped his fingers against his jacket, watching her from below. “Me n Lex are gonna be quarantining together, with Hannah obviously.” He told her, Alice listening with interest. It hadn’t occurred to her but of course it seemed natural for them to do.

“Just thought I’d come tell ya. We’ll come visit, staying on our ladders of course.” He winked.

Now Alice wasn’t sure if he’d be the type to break quarantine a little, just to see her and Deb, Danny and Sof, not like going to massive parties, he wasn’t that stupid, or if he’d be careful for Hannah and Lex, and wouldn’t want to risk giving anything to Alice or anyone. But she thought everyone she knew would know her and her dad were gonna be taking this very seriously. It was probably the obvious anxiety, but as long as they stayed healthy. 

Alice smiled though, a small joke coming to her head. “I’ll have to leave some pies on the windowsill for ya.” It wasn’t very funny but she was glad when Ethan at least laughed through his nose, the next part had a slightly higher ratio of seriousness to joke though. “But if my dad catches you he will spray you in the face with some anti bac agent if you’re an outsider, sorry.”

Ethan chuckled a bit audibly now, shaking his head. “Well honestly, Ali Cat, I’m kinda surprised he hasn’t sprayed me in the face with something since the first day I stepped foot onto your lawn, or at least rode onto it.” He wished for Alice to laugh and when she did, albeit behind her hand, he laughed too.

She also thought he looked a bit like a stray cat, who’d pounced up to lounge in the sun beams and just be an annoyance or familiar presence owning the house, who’d happily nap there if she didn’t bat him away. She just hoped in this metaphor he wouldn't be one that liked to be pet and gets lots of attention, she wouldn’t be able to get that close to him or any cats by tomorrow.

“Well he likes you now. He’ll definitely make some of those pies, if you agree to wear gloves to take them.” She pointed, half menacingly glaring at him, and Ethan shook his head, going to raise his hands but remembering what he was standing on. Alice gave a little squeak but he gripped back onto the side, smiling to her giddily and Alice sighing. 

“Yeah well, if he can pay for the gloves since all I’ve got are these bad boys-“ He wiggled his fingerless leather gloves, he was actually wearing a pair today, “-then I’ll be sure to be coming by with my household every day.” He smiled again, hearing Alice laugh just a little and he relaxed. As long as she was laughing. He didn’t want her to know how much even a pie a day would help them and their little family now, or even how seeing her would help him mentally. Lex didn’t even know what ToyZone were doing about wages yet, and the government didn’t care about poor people, that was just a fact. Either way he knew he’d be on this ladder again tomorrow.

“Welp, I gotta motor! Hannah needs picking up from school and Lex is in a meeting at work. See ya Ali Cat, and I’ll be waiting on my pie!” He started climbing down the ladder, and Alice held it at the top, looking down a bit like Rapunzel. “Oh yes chef, on it!” She saluted. Ethan shook his head at her.

Then Alice realised she’d touched the ladder, then her face. It probably didn’t mean anything, Ethan was probably fine… 

But she grabbed the anti bac wipes she had in her desk and after wiping her hands, wrists and where she’d touched her face, wiping down the windowsill Ethan had leaned on. And God had he actually swallowed part of her curtain choking on it?

“HEY!” 

She jumped, looking down startled, to see Ethan sitting on his motorbike and watching her, noticing a smaller helmet attached to the back seat. Ethan gave her a loving smirk and an ‘up yours’ symbol to go with it, pointing at the wipe in her hands, or the windowsill. “Rude!” He accused.

Alice looked to it, then down to him, and stuck her tongue out, before waving with the wipe like it was a handkerchief. And Ethan gave a little wave back, before revving the engine and speeding off. Thank God he’d missed her dad's grass this time. 

And as Alice binned the wipes a minute late, and went to the toilet to wash her hands, she bumped into her dad in the hallway who said “Oh is Ethan not here? I thought I just heard his bike outside.”

“So?” Bill asked, cutting up his chicken in the silent room and looking over to his daughter, who only played with her food. “How was today?”

Alice went to respond with the usual “Fine.” Or even a shrug of her shoulders. But instead she set down her cup of water and sighed with heavy shoulders. “Hard.”

Bill watched her for a second, before nodding, dropping his knife and fork with a clatter. “Yeah. Me too.”

Luckily, before Alices honesty could be turned into awkward silence, her phone began to buzz.

“I don’t even know how you can hear that thing without the volume.” Bill joked lightly, as Alice picked it up and saw the name ‘Deb💞🥺💝’ flashing. 

“Dad? Can I-?” She showed her phone screen.

“Yeah honey go on, you want me to clean up or leave your plate for you?”

“Erm, clean up, thanks.” Alice spoke over her shoulder before hurriedly pressing answer, putting her phone to her ear. “Deb?”

But Alice's heart stuttered when the first thing she heard wasn’t a ‘hello’ or her name back, or even a word. It was soft crying. 

“Deb!”

“H-Hey babe.” 

Alice could hear the grizzled laugh over the uncomfortable wheezing sounds. “What’s wrong?!”

Her dad looked over, but Alice caught his eyes with a panicky look, and he swiftly moved out of the kitchen to do something else whilst she jogged upstairs to her room, putting her other hand to her ear to hear her girlfriend better.

“I got in a fight with my mom, another real bad one. My brother came in and said we were being too loud, he kinda slapped me upside the head a bit too hard this time, my ear’s ringing.” 

Alice bit her lip, not even making it to her room and instead sliding down to lie against the door.

“Alice I… I don’t think I can do it. Quarantined with them alone for however long, I don’t think I can…”

It was an hour later when, after Bill had braved himself to go to the kitchen, he had finally finished the dishes, just finishing washing his hands too, when his teenage daughter came bounding up to him, and nearly knocked him over the way she pushed into his chest, wrapping her arms around his middle and sobbing heartily.

“Alice!? Alice honey, what’s wrong? What’s up, huh?” He rubbed circles over her upper back, moving to try and see her face, worried whenever his daughter cried, and Alice finally leant her head back. Still hugging her dad, and eyes red, she just shook under him. “I’m scared dad.”

Bill’s heart broke. These were scary times for everybody, and even though Alice was 18, she was technically an adult… she was still just a kid. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, one hand in her hair and playing with it softly in a repetitive pattern, leaning down to press a kiss against her head. “I know. I am too. We’ll take care of each other though, right?” He leaned his head partly away, trying to catch her eyes, his own filled with hope, just for her, just to spare her some.

Even though Alice appreciated that, she whined smally and shook her head. “Yeah, but that’s not just what I mean.”

“Oh?” Apart from that, Bill was silent to let her finish.

“I’m scared for Deb.”

And so, without betraying Debs' trust by giving any of the details away, Alice cried to her father while he held her, about all the horrible stuff Deb had talked about and how much she worried about, and in turn how much Alice worried too. And the more and more she went on Bill couldn’t imagine himself being stuck in that house for God knows how long, nevermind a teenage girl. Although Deb was considerably more stronger than him. 

He always got a nasty vibe off Debs family, never the girl herself though.

It ended up with them sitting against the oven, Bill’s back digging into the knobs and Alice's head burrowing into his chest comforted, as finally, her sobs calmed down. Even if she wasn’t done being upset.

“Dad?” She looked up to him, warm, and still, but eyes still red. “I don’t want to leave Deb in that house.”

Bill let out a long sad sigh and kept his hand moving in circles stroking Alice's hair and the back of her skull. “Neither do I.” No more sighing now. “Which is why you’re gonna ask her if she wants to quarantine with us.”

It was like everything froze.

Alice looked up to him, her head against his shoulder, lips softly falling into a silent ‘o’ shape. Until she could finally stammer our “A-Are you serious?”

Bill simply nodded to her.

Alice was barely retaining any information that wasn’t singularly essential to one conclusion, her fingers were already buzzing to go reach her phone. “Wait… Deb can move in with us? Really?”

Bill smiled lovingly down at her, eyes gentle and kind like they always were, as he gave her one final “Yes.”

Alice leapt up, jumping up and down in glee for a second, squealing to herself before trying to find her phone in her pocket. 

“Oh and Alice, sweetie?”

“Yeah dad!?” Alice spun around, forcing herself to stay in place instead of positively vibrating, smile stretching so unusually hard it hurt her cheeks. 

“Ask your other friends if they’d like to stay too. Lex, Hannah and Ethan. I swear they were always more ravenous than Deb.” He was mainly talking to himself by the end there, but once again, Alice was frozen in place.

“Are you kidding me?”

Bill shook his head. “It simply wouldn’t be fair. I don’t know how those kids were gonna do it before but, well they all came over on average three, four times a week for hours at a time, it just wouldn’t be the same. I’m kinda used to them now.” He smiled, standing up to pat her shaking hand. “If they want to stay, they can too. We can fit more in the family.”

“Dad that’s like… five kids. Five teenagers, one you.”

Bill nodded with an eager smile on his face. “Oh but Hannah’s so good.”

“What about me!?”

Alice laughed as her dad came closer to her, gently sliding his arms around her neck and shaking her just once, before pressing a kiss to her temple. 

Alice just kept laughing, slapping her hand over her face and forcing herself to get serious one last time, not wanting to let anyone down. She backed up, shaking her whole body once, and looking her dad dead in the eyes. “Are you sure you can do that?”

“Alice haven’t I already been ‘dadding’ you all for the last few months anyways? And yes Lex is very loud when she’s drunk in the living room.”

Alice didn’t even have time to freak over that last sentence, even if said in a jokey manner, because she was too busy throwing herself so hard at her dad he had to pick her up a little in the hug. And pick her up he did, smiling into her shoulder, as he embraced his daughter. But then Alice suddenly felt she had no time for hugging, as lockdown began at midnight and she needed to text the group chat and beg this wasn’t the night where they decided to try an early bedtime and better sleep schedule.

Luckily that was not the case, and after minutes of debating if this was a joke, this was the day Alice decide to give drugs or alcohol (or both Ethan offered) a try, or someone in the group chat and stolen her phone, everyone was ecstatic. Alice hadn’t felt this buzzed since the time she tried an energy drink when she was thirteen. Deb was texting Alice pictures of her room as it slowly got less and less full. Lex had called her, instead of texting, and it was the first time Alice had ever heard her cry. She was thanking her over and over, for herself and her sister. Alice ended up crying in the call along with Lex for a good ten minutes. Ethan just kept texting the group chat how he was gonna kiss Bill as soon as he got there.

It was almost nine when there was a knock at the door. Their first guest. Alice opened it to find Hannah stood there, backpack bursting full and fiddling with her loom bands, which judging by the colour scheme Ethan had definitely made.

“Hannah!” Bill smiled gently from the door, opening it behind Alice, who quickly got out the way. “Come in.”

Luckily they were expecting this. Ethan had dropped her off while he and Lex packed up, then Lex would drive the car and pick up Deb and her bags, while Ethan took his motorcycle, before taking them all to the Lake household. 

Bill, was very happy to have Hannah there. “Hi Hannah.” He properly greeted this time.

“Hello.” She responded.

Bill just kept smiling. “Have you eaten yet?”

Hannah shook her head. 

“Oh well come on then, you come make a plate.” Bill extended his arm and followed her to the kitchen, asking if she wanted to place her bag down and if it was okay for him to make her a drink. Alice almost shushed him, but surprisingly Hannah nodded without looking up. Huh. She hadn’t done that when Sof made her one. Although to be fair that was Sof. And Hannah had always seemed to like her dad from the get go.

Hannah sat down and ate while Bill texted his friends some updates, and Alice texted her friends too. Apparently Deb was bringing all the food she’d just bought for her family with her in the truck with Lex. “Fuck em.” Is what she’d said and Alice agreed. It wasn’t like they’d starve. They could go get their own groceries. She and her dad now and a family of seven to feed and bathe and all that jazz. Wow at least they had an extra toilet, showering might be a problem though. For once she almost wished Ethan was one of those boys who never showered unless they had to. Curse him for being healthy and caring about smelling nice for his peers. Not that she’d rather have Danny. She just guessed long baths were either out of the realm of possibilities, or would need to be slotted in.

Her dad came up to her after he’d finished making sure the spare room, thank God they had one, had the spare mattresses blown up, as well as the many upon many blankets, quilts, throw overs, cushions and pillows. Thank God Alice’s and the spare room had pretty big beds too. 

“Well...” Bill leaned against his wall, thinking about the future but not all all regretting his decision, knowing they’d get through it. “At least we’ll have loads of transportation.”

And with his car, Ethans and Ethans bike that was true. Until Alice turned her head to him, catching onto something.

“Where are we going?”

And upon understanding her words and remembering they almost would all be trapped in there, he froze at realising it was a bit of a moot point. 

When the door went again Alice rushed to open it, squealing as when she swung the door open, Deb was the one behind it. She pulled her inside for a hug, grabbing her tight and once Deb held her back, leaning her face into her shoulder and very tenderly, smiling against it.

“Move bitch, get out the way.” Ethan sang and Alice didn’t quite know what happened but one second Debs arms were around her and the next they were nowhere to be seen, and instead she was being squeezed tight to Ethan, lifted in the air, and spun around. 

A proper squeak came from her then, but before she knew it she was placed on the ground again, but Ethans arms were still wrapped around her. She didn’t mind though, no longer worried about being above the ground, closing her eyes into the hug, when she felt Lex hug her side too. Trapped between the leather and the denim, Alice hugged them both back, opening her arm further and Deb squeezing in there. 

Eventually they all backed off, giggling to each other and Ethan put his arms around Lex’s shoulders while Deb did the same to Alices. 

“Lex!”

“Hannah!”

Ethan let go as Lex ran towards Hannah, hugging her sister to her side and asking about the few hours she spent without her. Ethan followed along behind them, and Alice heard the bellowing of her dad “Ethan! Lex! Great to see you two! Do you want some dinner?” Before moving to Deb.

She leant into her arms, holding onto her shoulder as she lay her head there, closing her eyes and humming as she felt Deb press a kiss to her hair. “I missed you.” She said quietly, not quite a whisper.

Deb laughed a little, her breath hitting Alices cheek. “You just saw me this morning.”

Alice whined “Yeah but I already missed you, thinking I’d have to spend ages without you like this again.” She wriggled closer, taking Debs hand and holding it in hers, hiding her face momentarily in the crook of Debs neck. 

“I get it.” She conceded, taking Alices hand back and squeezing tight just once. “I missed you too.”

Bill got the three who hadn’t eaten sat down, with a full plate in front of them, and him, Alice and Hannah waiting by the side, one of them eating a banana on the countertop. 

“Erm, Bill?” Lex spoke up, wiping her face clean but a blush spreading over it instead. Ethan shuffled closer and took her hand under the table.

“Oh, yeah, Lex?” Bill smiled, standing up.

Lex blew air out through her cheeks, wondering how she was gonna do this. “Well… I dunno what they’re doing about jobs or furlough or anything yet at work, so I dunno if I’m still getting paid or considered an ‘essential worker’ or anything yet.”

Bill was worried about how stressed the young girl must be, but then she continued

“But like, I promise till my last paycheck comes in, I’ll chip in for me and my sister, and even if I get fired I’ll find a new job or something, okay? I’ll-“

“Lex Lex, stop honey.” Bill held his hand out, and Lex immediately shut up. Completely red now, but happy she’d got it out there, Ethan squeezed her hand under the table. He knew she had the weed deals but it wasn’t exactly like she wanted to say that to _him_ as a possible source of income. 

Deb nodded along too, bursting upright in what felt like an intense need. “Yeah Bill, I can get a job if needed, I have money saved up for more groceries and stuff too, so if you need it-“

Bill shot his hands out calmly, putting his finger to his lips and like a bunch of small children they all immediately turned quiet, Hannah put her own finger to her lips.

“Guys. I get it. I get the concern, and thank you. From my heart-“ he pat it- “thank you for caring, but I don’t need any of you to worry about that.”

“But Bill.” Ethan spoke up now, everyone turning to him and he gulped when he had the floor, but he continued, looking straight. “Hey, this is four extra kids… can you afford…” he left it hanging. There was a lot to consider for them. 

But Bill just smiled, and when Bill smiled, all the kids felt relaxed. At home. 

“Money isn’t a problem. All I have to spend it on is Alice-“ everyone looked to her and she blushed “and she doesn’t ask for much. I don’t go on holidays on my own, or even go out an awful lot, and her mom buys her stuff too. Most of my payroll that isn’t spent on bills, goes into savings. I’m more than happy to provide for all of you while you’re here. Honestly guys, please don’t worry about it. We’ve all got enough on our plates as it is.”

None of the kids really knew what to say. Bill seemed pretty final and they didn’t really wanna list flaws in case they got kicked out. So they all stayed silent in their thoughts for a second- until Ethan piped up. “Not all of us…” and then, he held out his plate.

Deb slapped his shoulder. Lex slapped the other one. Bill and Alice laughed as Bill refilled the plates for all three teens, and Hannah just rummaged through the bottom cupboards for some haribos, knowing she was allowed to, she was safe and free and at home here.

Once everyone was full, and they’d all had some long talks about plans for the near future, Bill directed them upstairs, and they all trailed behind him like ducklings. 

“Now guys we got Alice’s room and a spare bedroom, both have enough room on the beds for two or three people, but I have spare blow up mattresses there too.”

_“He’s clearly never been to a sleepover, you can fit six in those things if you’re skilled enough.”_

_“Ssh!”_ Lex whacked Ethans arm even though his whisper was very quiet.

“But please guys, no couples alone in a room, eh? It’s okay if someone else is there with you, and it’s up to you how you spilt it every night, but that’s my only rule though.” Bill was sure no one would want that commotion and neither would he, but he wouldn’t be overbearing about it… plus he had safety precautions in both rooms and bathrooms just in case for them. 

_“Aw man, no sharing with daddy?”_

_“Be quiet. I’ll kick you.”_

Ethan raised his eyebrows, snickering.

Deb just inhaled through her teeth though, crossing her arms over her chest. “That’s a dangerous thing to say, that’s you’re only gonna have one rule, when you don’t know who’s gonna get quarantine madness.” She brought up, and Bill begged that to stay a joke throughout the upcoming weeks or months.

Ethan, ever the jokester, or maybe he could just sense the room, threw his arm around Alice, jostling her a bit as she wasn’t expecting it. “Nah. I’m gonna be such a model citizen in here, Alice will teach me!”

Alice's crooked smile showed either amusement or awkward reluctance at that. 

Ethan continued. “Like in- 

“My fair lady?” Alice offered, Bill having it on the tip of his tongue too. 

“Kingsman!” 

“Ah.”

“Well to be fair to Ethan, they do reference that movie in Kingsman.” Bill brought up, Ethan unslinging his arm from Alice and smiling with bright teeth at Bill.

“You’ve seen Kingsman?” Alice asked, not realising it. Although what else would have he been doing after the divorce without her, other than watching loads of films she supposed.

“Ooh, movie night!” Lex proposed quickly, Ethan high fiving her at the idea.

Deb pointed to Hannah though. “Isn’t she a bit tired? It’s like, midnight.”

Everyone turned to Hannah now, who was leaning into Lex, watching, but other than that looked fine.

“Don’t point. And yeah but Banana will go to sleep anyways, if we wanted to watch it.”

“Well i'm going to sleep within the hour anyway. I’m an old man, I’m not as used to staying up like you kids.” Bill smiled at them, but they could start to see the wateriness in his eyes, the slower movement of his limbs. “And it’s been a long day.”

“Nah man!” Ethan said, slapping his arm around Bill now, instead of his daughter. “You’re as fit as a fiola.”

Alice was too busy glaring at Ethan as he winked discreetly to her, with his arm around her dad. If he kept hitting on him as a joke, while they were quarantined together nonetheless, she was sure eventually her dad would catch on and she would have to hit Ethan if that happened. 

Bill just chuckled. “Ah, thank you Ethan but I do have to start getting ready for bed soon. Are you kids going downstairs again?”

They all looked to each other before shaking their heads. 

“Then I’ll turn the plugs off, you go decide what you’re doing for sleep then.”

They all scrambled into the spare room, where the bags had all been dumped, and Bill went downstairs to check the plugs, the lights, the stove, the doors and gates, before tiredly making his way upstairs. Boy he hoped those kids didn’t have a worse effect on his back. But he knew the truth. They were good kids.

And as he got to the landing, that was confirmed by the teen waiting there for him, pensively leaning against the bannister.

“Ethan.” Bill smiled, making his way across and leaning next to him too. “What’s up son?”

Ethan looked up at that final word, seeming to stiffen a little before turning pink and messing with the back of his already messy hair. Bill didn’t even think much of it. “Aha yeah… well… I just wanted to give you this.”

He handed Bill a small envelope and looking inside, Bill gasped before slamming the paper shut.

“I know it’s not a lot, and I know you said no. But I wanna try n chip in, for the three of us. It’s different if it was just Deb because she’s one person and, well, like, Alice girlfriend n stuff, so basically like your daughter in law right?”

Now Bill felt blushy.

“But this is us three, and, like, we wouldn’t be top of the sale at an orphanage ya know? Or at least, I wouldn’t.” Ethan laughed, Bill did not. Ethan coughed. “Anyway I was joking, sorry, but look, it’s all I got for now, me Lex n Hannah, we have big plans! But I’m gonna try and get more to help out okay? And if it ever gets too much I’ve always got the motor shop to go back to so if you take care of- ohf!”

Ethan was cut off as Bill had grabbed his back, and pulled the younger boy into him, giving him a massive fatherly hug. Ethans hands didn’t know what to do, even though he was definitely the hugger of the group. But when he calmed, he eventually settled on giving Bill a hard few slaps on the back. Bills pats were gentle and he rubbed his hand up and down after. Why did Ethan feel warm even after Bill had let him go?

“You’re a good kid, Ethan.”

Ethan wasn’t even red now. He was full on white.

“I’m glad Lex and Hannah have you, and Alison.”

Ethan started choking, he didn’t know why. Bill pat his back to help him and Ethan slowly took the envelope Bill handed back, and pocketed it.

“Save up for your future son. I’ll be here for you till this mess is all sorted.”

The mood of the room was way too serious and fluffy, and Ethan felt like he’d just been vibe checked over the back of the head. “Aha…” He scratched there too, finding nothing. “Err, thanks dad.”

He made sure to laugh very loudly in front of Bill before he scrambled off into Alices bedroom, sure he knocked something over, thanking fuck everyone was changed already and slamming the door behind him, pressing his back and hands against it hard and panting. Before he looked down, and all the girls were looking up at him confused in their pyjamas.

“Alice? I’m going to fuck our dad.”

“Ethan NO!”

It was only about two hours later when Bill woke up in a cold sweat. Damn, his dreams just had to be scarily realistic, didn’t they? He blamed the stress of today, and recent weeks, and his entire life, but turning towards his nightstand he groaned. Cup empty. 

He had to force himself to get up, and quietly, remembering he had guests, went to get himself some water. Downing it, before refilling it once more, he tiptoed back down the hallway, before deciding to just check up on the kids. He opened the room closest to his, the spare one, where they’d all left their stuff, to see who’d decided to stay there and with who. But to his surprise, no one was inside. 

Shutting the door, he moved on silently, and very slowly, creaked open Alice's bedroom door.

Illuminated in the soft pink glow of her fairy lights, Bill held his hand over his mouth to squeak, getting out his phone he’d used as a flashlight on his journey and snapping a picture, sending it to all their phones this second so they could alllll see it in the morning. 

Inside, all softly breathing, faces calm and under mountains of blankets, all five of them laid on the floor mattresses, spooning each other. Hannah was on the far left, with Lex holding her sister right behind, Ethan cuddling his girlfriend and Alice snuggling her best friend, and finally Deb protectively holding her girlfriend. His daughter. 

It was just too cute.

He was hoping that wasn’t drool coming from Ethan as he was basically sitting his cheek on poor Lex’s face, but to be fair, Alice seemed to be clinging onto him so tight like a teddy bear, he wouldn’t be surprised if it was being squeezed out of him. Plus he could have sworn she’d managed to get her hair in both Deb and Ethan’s mouths, although Deb looked like she was smelling it too. One point in her department though, was that Alice and Hannah seemed to be the only ones who didn’t snore, even softly. 

But he left it at that and forced himself to look away from the adorable domestic scene, turning off the fairy lights he always chided Alice about as a fire hazard, at least spotting no lit candles, and quietly shut the door behind him and went back to bed. 

This whole situation was stressful for him. He couldn’t imagine what it was like for the teens.


	2. Smoke Club Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sequel! An in depth look into the new lives of the household of Bill, Alice, Ethan, Lex, Hannah and Deb, during quarantine. The high lows and alll the bits between

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IMPORTANT UPDATE: updated fic bc I realised half the ending was missing, with only the final few paragraphs just added onto a random spot in the fic. It’s all done now!

Living in a house alone was difficult. Living in a house with a teenage daughter _was_ difficult, but made him so much happier. Living in a house with five teenagers, teetered right between those lines.

“Hey guys! Anyone wanna help with shopping?” Bill yelled as he slammed the door closed, a week into the quarantine. His back was aching as he dragged all the bags for a family of six, including four absolutely ravenous teenagers, inside, placing them on the kitchen counter with a loud sigh, then a dad cough. Whenever he coughed his heart raced, but that was the cough he got whenever he thought he’d try weights again at the gym, so he was fairly sure he wouldn’t have to quarantine himself from his fa- household.

Bill went to the shops every time, so the kids didn’t have to risk anything. But any help with the groceries, even off one of the kids, really was a weight off his shoulders. Course they didn’t _have_ to do anything, but he sensed guilt in them when they’d run downstairs, once full of smiles, to him doing chores all by himself. At least this gave them an opportunity. 

They all thundered downstairs, he could swear Ethan was trying to slide down his bannister whenever he wasn’t looking, judging by the footstep patterns, and while Hannah and Alice hung back, knowing what was about to happen, Ethan, Lex and Deb all ran forward, Bill surrendering his hands lest they get chomped off, and watched as the three all came to pile snacks and snacks only into their arms, ready to add them to their hoards. “Hey hey, vultures!” Bill lightly joked, risking coming forward and not taking food off them, but emptying out one of the other bags, designated for the fridge. “If you want snacks leave em for a sec so I can wash all the groceries first, I’ll clean those ones first if you want and then you can take em.”

Sighing quietly, they all put them down, but Ethan still held one object. 

“Hey buddy, wash your hands first before you eat em, okay?” Bill asked, but Ethan shook his head. “Oh nah man, I’m gonna save washing my hands till after I’ve washed all this shi-stuff with you.” He said naturally.

Smiling and happy for the help, Bill watched as Lex opened a multipack of haribos, carefully shook till a smaller pack from the inside, clean, fell into Hannah’s cupped palms, then got the anti bac spray and a roll of kitchen paper to herself. 

Alice and Deb also moved forward, calling freezer foods together, and Hannah, who sat on the counter, kicking her legs, spoke up. “Bill? Is it okay if I eat, and then clean?” She asked softly but curiously. Bill smiled to her “Course it is Hannah! I’d rather you finish your snack then get your hands dirty. Hey-“ He leant in closer, a bit hard a whole counter away “maybe these guys will have even finished all the tough work for ya if you take em reallll slow.” He chuckled, and Hannah, appreciatively, gave a smaller one back.

Once they’d finished unpacking, as a team, and had all fought for the sink- well this time Hannah and Bill were the ones stepping back- Ethan spoke up to Bill, just as Hannah stepped away from washing her hands and he stepped forward. “Hey _buddy!_ I noticed there wasn’t a receipt in any of these things!..” He called out, half accusingly, half teasingly condescendingly. 

Bill muttered something to himself before turning to the other boy, noticing his fingers itching at his wallets pocket. “Ethan next time you, or any of you guys-“ he pointed to a guilty looking Lex and Deb- “try to pay me, I’m only taking it out of your snacks, and your snacks only. I’m seemingly buying more than I ever had and yet there’s never anything left for me…” He was clearly joking. He didn’t mind the extra cost, and he had enough snacks, but Lex still whacked Ethan from her side. “Hey man! If you cost me my cranberry muffins I’ll kick your ass! Shit’s expensive to come by!” 

She hit him even though she’d offered to pay probably the same amount of times as Ethan, not that either knew as sometimes they tried to do a private exchange with Bill, so as to protect the other. Afterwards with a quick mimed apology to Hannah, then Bill at her slip up. But Bill just chuckled and, now with everything clean and out away, grabbed the dual pack of cranberry muffins right in front of the counter, took one for himself and threw Lex the other. “Ko- yeet!” He called out correctly in time before Lex caught it. Three of the girls cheered for him whereas Ethan threw his hand to his heart, in fake pain, gasping at Bill as they both bit into their muffins. Bill smiled with a few crumbs still on his lips, before wiping and swallowing. “ _Buddy_ , there’s like six twin packs of that _shit_ in there. Sorry Hannah.”

The first few weeks all the kids were on edge though. All wanting his approval, all wanting to not get kicked out the house.

“RIGHT! WHODUNNIT?!”

Everyone, except Bill, who was out, ran downstairs, and all their faces dropped as they saw the smashed window, all the glass pieces gone, in the bin with the open lid Ethan was holding. Ethan slammed it closed now he had everyone’s attention, hissing “Who the fuck broke this while Bill was gone? We can’t hide this shit!?”

“We!?” Lex shrieked, already backing up with Hannah in her arms. “I didn’t do shit!”

“Well neither did I!” Ethan moaned, looking backwards and slapping the countertop, swearing, exclaiming and gesturing at it. “I just found it like this!”

“Did you? Or are you trying to blame someone else?!” Deb suggested, pointing accusingly at Ethan. 

His hand leapt to his heart.

“Erm guys, I know it’s a bit worrying, but I’m sure my dad’s not actually gonna be mad.” Alice tried to assure them.

But no one listened.

“I saw you in the kitchen ten minutes ago!”

“Yeah and Alice was with me! She can testify. We didn’t see it then we were on the other side!”

“Well-“

“If the window wasn’t broken ten minutes ago it had to be Ethan!”

“Well wait, Deb just said, we weren’t on this side of the kitchen- but anyway-!”

“Yeah thank you Ali Cat, see?!”

“Well maybe the window was broken from the outside! Weren’t Lex and Hannah playing swingball in the garden this morning?”

“Don’t you bring Hannah into this!”

“Oooh look who’s getting all defensive!”

“Stop yelling…”

“Hey guys yeah, maybe we should listen to Hannah, I really don’t think-“

“See what you did now! Don’t accuse my sister!”

“It’s not my fault! Neither’s the fuckin’ window!”

“How did it even break? It doesn’t look like someone hit it, it looks like something went clean through it.”

“I saw red vent in caf! They’re the impostor!”

“Ethan shut the fuck up with your obscure fucking game references no one knows what the fuck you’re talking about.”

“Well I’m checking the garden! Maybe there’s something out there!”

“Could neighbour kids have snuck into Bill’s backyard?”

“Guys if you could-“

“Alice said there’s no kids next door on either side, don’t you listen?”

“My Dad really won’t kick-“

“Sorry we’re not _all obsessed_ with your girlfriend, SIMP!”

“Tell you what, that window’s not gonna be the only thing broken…”

“The only thing YOU broke more like!”

“I’m going to throw you both through the window if you don’t shut up!”

Eventually it lead to Alice smiling awkwardly to her friends sister she hasn’t spoken to all too much, not that the kid spoke loads anyway, taking her shoulder up from Lex’s hand who was too enamoured in the irl game of cluedo, and leading her into the living room, closing the door behind them.

Alice sat her down with a sigh, trying to smile at her, she was only looking at the ground, fiddling and pinching her hands, the rest of her body still though. “I’m sorry about that.” Alice eventually told her, trying once more to bend her head and search for a smile, before laying back against the couch and huffing. 

That's when Hannah looked up at the older girl. The daughter. “Do you think Bill’s gonna be real mad?” She asked pensively, Alice could almost see the flinch in the girls eyes and this time, she didn’t look away. Alice could smile more confidently now. “No. Nope, not at all.” She ran her hands down her legs, up and down stretching as Hannah nodded, seeming to take those words as truth, and calming. Alice carefully tried something, and slowly nudged Hannah with her side. Hannah looked into Alice's eyes. So a good sign. “My dad’s never mad about anything. And he’s sure as heck not gonna kick you out.”

“Or Lex, Or Ethan?”

Alice smiled tightly, shaking her head. “Nah. Dad likes you all too much. Besides, he’d know it was an accident, he’s too much of a softy to be mad about that.” She slumped against her seat, almost exhausted by that argument. God how long was this pandemic gonna last?

“Kind man.”

Alice looked over, to Hannah who sat there, holding her hands but not fiddling with them anymore, and she noticed how stiffly the girl had really been sitting up before, now her back slightly arched and muscles relaxed, just like her. Alice's smile was genuine, and not for the kid this time. “Yeah. He is.”

When Bill came back it was bombardment. Alice tried to hastily explain, while the older three nearly threw themselves on him, scrambling and screaming over each other with conspiracies, alibis, apologies for the others behaviour, and more. Until they noticed the wrapped pane of glass in Bill’s hands. 

Their eyes went wide, hands still half grabbing each other to lunge forward and tell their story on why they couldn’t have possibly broken the window. Bill shook his free hand out in front of him. “Oh woah woah woah, is anyone hurt? Did anyone stand in the glass? I thought I picked it all up. Where’s Hannah?”

Ethan felt Deb drop his choker and he let go of her beanie and hair, Lex falling from her tippy toes when he cleared his throat. “What- erm- whadya got there Billy buddy boy?”

Alice rolled her eyes, sitting down on the arm of the sofa, rolling her eyes again as she took the heavy pane her dad settled on her lap to talk to the teens properly. “Oh I fell over this morning and my coffee mug just went flying out the window! A bit of an old man moment I guess, ha.” He laughed, half wryly, half genuinely bemused.

Ethan, still a bit confused, but not one to miss an opportunity to endlessly flirt with his ‘daddy’- which he constantly refused to elaborate which way he meant when saying it- pat Bill’s back. “Nah man, you’re stunning! Don’t look a day over 21!” He winked, then turned to Alice to wink at her too, as she _glared._

“Aha, thanks buddy.” Bill got out, mostly noting how Ethan went to slap his back, which wasn’t unusual for the teen, but ended up just patting the upper half of it instead, almost gently. He could tell Ethan wanted to make sure he wasn’t hurt, or at least make sure he didn’t hurt him more. And it was sweet of anyone really to care, even in such a small way. “I got some new glass, just not a mug. I couldn’t replace it.” He looked sadly down to Alice. Now Alice put the window on the coffee table, standing up heartbroken. “Oh dad, not the one I-“

“Oh no no not the one you painted for me sweetie! I’m always careful with that one. I’d rather aha-“ he knocked on his skull twice- “chip the ole noggin than that. But it was a ‘worlds best dad’ mug.”

The father and daughter smiled relaxedly, while the other three teens eyes still bulged. Lex swallowed. “B-But-...” Ethan closed her jaw without even looking. It stayed snapped shut.

“Oh I apprenticed my godfather doing this as one of my little jobs before I had to get serious with a little one on the way.” He wanted to take Alice's head under his arm and noogie it, instead he ruffled her hair fondly, and Alice still squinted at that, just more playfully. “Don’t worry kids! I know how to do it. Now if no one did step in glass y’all go play your games or somethin’.” He waved them off, much to the still shock of three of them. “I don’t want anyone getting hurt!”

It was a week later, coming to get his morning cup of joe and stare out through his window, to the sun still rising over his hedges, did Bill notice a brand new “worlds best dad” mug lying just in his favourite place on the countertop. He still didn’t know who, or how many of them, had bought it for him.

It was strange living in a house overnight with six people in it. The hallways were a nightmare if people were trying to get places at once. It was constantly “oop” or “watch it” or “I’m just gonna squeeze past ya!” Or something like “Move bitch, get out the way!”, “Asshole I was turning there!” “Hurry your ass up!” or just simply “Fuck off.” The last four were never used round Bill or Hannah. 

One time it was Ethan squeezing past Alice in the cross section between the bathroom and the back of the stairs, he had to lightly hold her waist to properly squeeze past and she had to try and pop herself out the wall by shoving his shoulders to one side, because neither could be bothered moving back, once being freed with an “excuse me” and a “why, Ali?”, they learnt it was better to be speedy and sort of, force yourself outta there in a rush. The next time Ethan rounded that same corner doing so, and immediately head butted into Bill, both of them falling into the tight space, and having to call for help once they realised their legs were tangled, and they were trapped. The girls all came over with their cameras open on their phones. 

Sometimes it was fine to be speedy though. Especially when it came to the bathrooms.

“I’m literally going to break up with you!”

“PLEASEEEE!” Ethan crossed his legs, leaning his head against the toilet door and banging his fist on it. Oh my GOD had his girlfriend ever taken this long usually? 

“I CAN’T PEE WITH YOU LISTENING!”

“PEE! PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PISS!”

The downstairs bathroom was the same. “Hannah please oh my God oh my God.”

“Hannah I will literally bribe you to let me in before Alice.”

“With what?!” Alice argued, leaning her back against the door while Deb had her hand on the knob, mornings were the worst. “Dad buys everything and all the snacks are free range!”

“GOD I never thought I’d miss capitalism!” Deb turned her whole body, banging the back of her head to it. “I don’t know what HE’S complaining about!” She yelled upstairs to Ethan, who had physically forced her away every time she tried to get near the upstairs door. “He can go WHEREVER!”

Alice turned to her, eyes sharp. “NOT in my fruit bush!”

They heard the flush and both girlfriends turned to the door, silently begging. The faucet turned on, they could swear they could hear the soap pumping. “Oh Hannah please hurry up!” Alice begged, whining disheartenedly. 

Unfortunately, the door was a pull, so the door opened outwards, which meant Alice and Deb had to wait till Hannah was out the bathroom, both smiling at her as she left calmly. There was no pause, the two girlfriends ran for it, ramming each other into the doorway and they both got stuck there, no one passing further than the other, shoes making heat on the floor. Then-

“OLD MAN EMERGENCY, COMING THROUGH!” Bill easily stuck his hands between the middle of them and ran inside, locking the door out of nowhere. 

Alice could cry, rapping on its wood. “Dad PLEASE, I’m your daughter!”

“I’ll let you adopt me and then I’LL be your daughter so you’ll have to let me in Bill!” Deb tried to bargain, everyone too desperate to take in the words at all.

Showers were usually less desperate. Sometimes people complained about how bad they smelt, and Ethan had the annoying habit of singing very loudly and purposely badly _outside_ the shower in the hopes of you hurrying up. Alice once thought they were about to cause a mutiny and throw her out the house, when she had a bath with headphones on. It was their fault for not checking the schedule though!

Sometimes they asked people if they really needed their music on speakers. Either in the shower or just chilling in their room. Other times Bill would be walking downstairs and get a heart attack from upstairs as he heard every kid chorus “But my taste in music is YOUR FACE.”

Or, lines like that.

The shock may have also come from the fact he was sure Lex was in the shower, Ethan was bothering her outside it, Hannah was learning how to do paper fortune tellers from Alice in her room and Deb was in Bill’s room finding his charger as they sung screamed in chorus.

At least cleanliness was upheld in the household, Bill did think he could have gotten a lot of a less caring group of teenagers, although he knew they were all good kids from the start. Well not fully, it took him a while with Deb and Ethan, but he could tell himself that. He knew for sure now anyway!

The only problem with cleanliness was how much time and effort it took. Not just for the individual, but Bill had about four full baskets worth of laundry every week _at least._ It was SO MUCH LAUNDRY. Even though he knew Deb Hannah and Lex reused some shirts and pants as long as they were clean, which was thrifty unlike Alice who liked a different look every day, and he had had to tell Ethan “look Ethan, my man, you gotta give me more socks than this.” Apart from that, it was all fine.

Well, apart from when he got Deb’s and Lex’s mixed up, which was a lot. Over time he got used to which clothes belonged to which of his d- girls. Not _his-_ they are their own people.

...Come to think of it, they weren’t even the worst when it came to fighting. He remembered some hefty hallway standoffs.

“Daaaaad Ethan’s wearing my shirt AND my pants.” Alice called out, having physically blocked Ethan from both the two bedrooms, as he jogged out the bathroom. Ethan had thought it no biggie, but Alice literally had her hands stuck between the bannister and the wall. He scoffed, pointing to her. “You wore my shirt!”

“I asked!” She defended.

Ethan got to work wracking his brain, crossing his arms over her black button up on his chest and bringing one hand up to his cheek, tapping his lips in thought. Then, he got one. “I’ve never seen you wear these leather and plaid bad boys.” He motioned down to the trousers he was wearing. He couldn’t believe they fit, maybe they were meant to be ones that bunched at your ankles.

“They’re for limited outfits only!” Alice simply told him once more. Sure of her facts and she was not having Ethan _steal_ her entire wardrobe! She worked hard on it!

He tilted his head, guffawing and throwing his hands up, before looking at her, still. “Face it, I make them look better.”

“No you don’t! Gimme!!” And just like that Alice went for him. Call it quarantine madness. Or sibling rivalry. She ran for him, pulling at _her_ button up, not really thinking things through.

“Assault! Assault!” He tried to push her back startledly, his best friend clawing at him. “Alice is trying to rip my clothes off me!!”

Alice **growled.**

They wrestled for a few moments, both of them scuffling and neither letting up, eventually Ethan managed to grab the squirming girl and wrap his arm around her neck, pinning her to him even as she tugged and tried to get his arm to move. He leaned down, snarling. “Nothin’ of this changes the fact I look like a SNACC.”

“Oh yeah? So you don’t mind if I bite you then?” Alice slipped out of his hold, dodged behind him, instead of in front where he was ruining her attack, and she jumped on his back.

“You’re fucking feral!”

Ethan span around with Alice on his back, at one point tempted to bang her into the walls but somehow pushing his ten year old WWE intrusive thought back, instead wrangling with her as they both hit at each other, spinning until the commanding deep voice of the father called out. 

“Hey guys!”

They both froze, Alice still on Ethans back, legs the only things clinging with one hand in his curls and the other their shirt, Ethan having one hand on Alice's collar too and the other the shirt on his body. They both looked at him with wide eyes.

“No fighting on the landing please. You could fall you know.” Bill took off back downstairs to finish his quiet movie with Hannah, and as soon as he turned his back, the teens were animated again. The spare bedroom door swung open as the back of Alice's foot kicked it, and with Alice on his back, Ethan ran into the other room, the last thing anybody on the landing would have been able to see, both tackling each other in there and about to fall.

“I can’t believe you let him wear your pants, ew he doesn’t wash his underwear.” Deb brought up a few days later while reminiscing about the fight and still trying to find the answer of who won. Of course, emotionally though, she was on Alice's side fully. But both had pretty convincing retellings of the story. The thought of a re-enactment had been thrown around, funnily enough by Alice and Ethan the most.

Everyone however, was still sneering and reeling at that comment from Deb. Except Ethan, who was glowering.

“Crusty ass.” Lex called him. They had heard from Ethan about the short convo with Bill about laundry, they couldn’t _believe_ the fool had told them. 

“No Bill said socks!” Ethan moaned, not knowing _why_ the fuck he told them Bill basically said he wasn’t swapping his socks out enough. It wasn’t even that bad!

But now they were alllll making fun of him. Well, apart from Hannah who was asleep in the other room.

“Ew. Oh God I feel sorry for my poor dad.” Alice shivered, pretending to hide into Deb while smirking at Ethan. Deb enjoyed it though. “Yeah! If anything we should at least be paying him for _that!_

“I can’t believe I’m even dating you.”

“I can’t believe you let him sleep with you.”

“DESGUS- wait, Deb?!!”

Even if Alice had decided that was too much, Ethan had decided it a long time ago.

“BIIIIIILL!?” He yelled downstairs, in a whining kids tone calling for their dad. “I have clean underwear right!!!!?”

“One minute!”

Alice crossed her arms, her back against Debs chest and her girlfriends head on top of hers, both squinting their eyes and smiling. “Wow, can’t believe you’re gonna snitch to our dad. You’re such a child.”

“Shut the fuck up Ali Cat I ain’t gonna snitch, did you not hear my question?”

“Honestly-“ Lex made a show of putting her fingers to her nose like a clothes peg, and Ethan rolled his eyes at her dramatics “I think your stink waves are outdoing the sound waves.”

“Hey I know enough to know that don’t even make sense!”

Deb held out her phone, and on it was the video of the orangutan. “Uh Oh, stinky!”

Ethan was about to swear at her when Bill opened the door. Deb hid her phone and Alice sat up a little, all smiling at him, Ethan with hope and sweet sweet vindication in his eyes, when Bill smiled to the others, smiled to Ethan, and nonchalantly handed the teenage boy a clean pair of his underwear.

The girls all laughed, then cooed, Ethans face dropping and Bill lightly chided them. “Now now don’t be immature girls, we all have laundry here.” Although on the inside he wasn’t really sure why Ethan was asking for them right now, at this moment. 

Ethan grabbed them, sitting on them quickly with a red blush to his pale cheeks, but held his attitude while Bill was here. “No but is my underwear clean before?” He asked him, all looking up to the only one standing in the room, who blinked a few times, cogs visibly turning in his brain, as his mouth opened and reclosed. Everyone stared at the confused dad. “Well everyone’s laundry is dirty before they’re clean.” He answered realistically, unsure what else the teens meant, and while Ethans face looked a little disheartened, his attention was taken away by Lex’s voice. “Yeah but are they _naastyy?_ ”

“Lex!” Alice called.

At least once Bill had gone, Alice had decided she didn’t like being too close to a bully anymore, and moved over to Ethans side, cuddling and defending him, while both their girlfriends still taunted. 

Until she realised they were both basically sitting on Ethans underwear, shrieked, and ran off into her girlfriends arms.

It was weird, as Alice had never experienced sibling rivalry. Even Hannah and Lex barely had symptoms of it. But dear oh dear did it sometimes come out in the kids. Yes like with fights over clothes, or bathrooms, or snacks, but sometimes, they were over Bill too.

“Hey Bill, will you come look at this line up for our next hockey match we’re allowed to do?”

“Later! He said he’s playing a way out with me now!”

“Ethan that’s a long ass game! You’ll have to do it in sections, Bill’s gonna come look at these awesome photos I snapped on our walk today.”

“No hey, he’s my dad! I wanna talk to him about something!”

“Hi Bill. Wanna bake cookies again with me?”

Poor Bill didn’t want to choose. Sometimes he sectioned his day out. Luckily he was a man of his word so if someone had gotten him to agree to something, he had an excuse that that was what he was gonna do first. At first he thought he may find it hard, favouriting Alice instinctively, but maybe his need to father these kids lacking that before had weighed in too, because he really was trapped between a rock and a hard place and a hard place and a hard place and a hard place. 

Alice sometimes got really bad. Only internally, but it occasionally came out obviously to her friends. He was _her_ dad! She knew it was childish, but that’s the instinct that was in her. She seethed at her younger self who didn’t spend as much time with him as now that’s all she wanted. Maybe she’d ask him for a daddy daughter day.

Not that she regretted this decision, oh no. She was very happy her friends were here, and she liked this new support system they all had. She was proud of her dad. But her first actual fight with Deb throughout this whole quarantine was about her dad. God she was even getting jealous of her _girlfriend_. She didn’t wanna fight, they made up like an hour later when they’d both cooled off, and went downstairs to spend time with him together. Bill was already there, letting Hannah face paint him. He did think it was going to be Spider-Man at first with the webs he felt, but the end result was beautiful. 

Mmmfffhhhhgrmblekulinfkn maybe if _Alice_ was thirteen again he’d spend more time with her!

After all, it wasn’t lack of attention, or any less love. It was simply not enough time in the day. Though he still somehow found it, for every kid who wanted or needed some. 

There were also fights about plenty of other things, like who got to pick what they were having for dinner, or what colour the new tea towels he got should be, or who should sit up front the one day they all went in the car to the doctors check up together. But Bill was, apart having an internal panic attack, very democratic about it all.

Honestly though? He wasn’t fully consciously aware how much these kids needed him and fought over him, but he knew he secretly liked being smothered by em. 

That time he was crossing the road and holding Hannah’s hand, and Alice went to grab his too, only for both to continue holding on after they’d crossed? Oh he felt like such a super dad. Along with his brood of ducklings surrounding him. 

He was a bit concerned with the four older ones when they started punching each other because they wanted to be the one to press the green man button, however. But Hannah kept a hold of him, and he just refereed to make sure no one got hurt. Plus they all wanted to know who the winner was. Bill couldn’t even tell who pressed the damn button.

But hey, he had to have a little chuckle when they all competed over who could make him the best coffee (Alice won of course, only with years of expertise behind her), or that time he mentioned he was achy, and all ran to find his orthopaedic pillow fastest. He was sure it must all be some friendly competition, a silly little joke together, not that he was complaining at all. But sometimes they stampeded to win a little too fast.

But still no one in his house would pop his damn back pimples. Not even Ethan had offered! He’d seen those videos that the younger generation found ‘oddly satisfying’! He’d heard of Dr. Pimple Popper! Yet no one in this house would help thei- this old man out? Kids these days.

Once a week they had games night. Bill had asked if that was okay first, he didn’t wanna be a pushy dad again and drive them all away, but soon there was a petition to make it a bi-weekly thing. They’d even made powerpoints! Powerpoints! Those kids were definitely bored in the quarantine, oh but did Bill have fun being asked to sit down for a ‘very serious discussion’ and getting them all presenting to him. 

And he was definitely up for it! They weren’t even that bad when it came to games! They’d had a few arguments but no one had ever thrown a match, or physically the game to the floor, and they’d gotten some great inside jokes that included all six of them from those fam- games nights. Something they were slightly lacking in, inclusivity wise. He loved to be part of some of their jokes together.

They’d even used some online games for game nights, after explaining them excitedly rather than condescendingly or boredly to Bill, this game like jackbox and a few apps or websites, but stuff they’d do in the room together. Together. Bill thought it was very good for all of them. They’d all rush down on Saturday night, and it soon became tradition to turn off the main lights in place of the string ones and lamps, and have a bowl of something, be it popcorn, pretzels, (vegan) marshmallows, you name it at the ready. Recently those food items had been used as betting chips but he didn’t think it was so bad. They all had fun. Even Hannah started to enjoy some of the more rambunctious aspects of it. Whenever they’d played a game like Irish snap or spoons or something, Hannah squealed every time she and the others banged their hands onto the table, or on top of hers, finding it fun and safe. Lex seemed to enjoy that aspect of it too.

Monopoly had to be played in teams so at least people would have one person they would speak to in the home. So far Deb and Lex’s team had one win, Alice and Ethans had two, and Bill and Hannah’s had four. She was a very bright girl, Bill felt bad when his dad nature came out and he accidentally threw certain plays a few times to let the others win without thinking about it. Especially for Alice. He _still_ didn’t think she noticed after all these years, but he guessed Ethan didn’t mind the cheating, by the evil glee in his eyes whenever it happened.

It was nice to have a bit of fami- together time anyways. Even in a crowded house, with no end in sight. Bill was a happy man.

They weren’t all in a room together a lot but it was kinda easier. They were always on their phones or consoles, but it wasn’t too bad. Bill didn’t have to baby them and always be watching. It wasn’t like they were all three. They could entertain themselves. Even though his friends were sure he must be getting no sleep by this point.

He got calls and texts off them all the time. Especially his buddy Paul. Most of them just consisted of “Wow GL” in the first week and recently he’d been getting some nearly every day asking “how’re you holding up?” It was nice. His friends and even just co workers all wanted to support him. That lovely receptionist Sylvia had even sent a fruit basket at one point, texting how fruit is so expensive nowadays and how he just had to need a lot for six people. She really was a doll, he’d have to walk by her desk more often to say hi once work re opened...

One day he walked downstairs, bright and early 8am, and found all hi- the kids, standing in the living room, right next to each other, all looking up at him, unblinking, still, waiting. He had to wipe his eyes. That was certainly odd… what were they doing up at 8am?

“Listen, Bill, we know you can’t really do much right now-“

“Not that we could offer a lot-“ 

“But we wanted to offer you this.”

“For all your hard work.”

Bill took the slip of paper off Deb, looking at the kids lined up. Head bobbing from Lex to Ethan to Deb to Alice...

“Thank you.”

Then finally at Hannah. He smiled kindly at her, then the others, intrigued, before reading the paper.

‘Bills voucher for a free day.  
No troubles, no teens!  
Just you time ~~babeyyy~~!  
24 hour guarantee’

He re-read it again, chuckling, looking at the sun in the top corner, with sunglasses of course, and the background of the voucher with palm trees and lounge chairs. Someone had certainly put in effort to make it look like a voucher, apart from the weird shiny effect you sometimes got on em that he hated under his nails anyway, he had a good artist somewhere in that mix. He looked up, cheeks bursting, weak, eyes leaky but hidden from the kids. “Can I use it now?”

“Thank FUCK! SORRY!” Ethan got out, blurting a little towards the end.

Alice moaned, moving forward and kissing her dad on the cheek. He hugged her quickly before she could leave. “Why do you think we got up before midday for you?”

They were right though, there wasn’t much he could do during a quarantine, on his day off. But Bill was very happy, to just take a longggg walk around Hatchetfield. 

All while they looked after themselves.

His ‘spa’ day did include ordering chinese though, which was a hoped for bonus by all the kids in the house.

Sometimes it was hard not to baby them though. Or at least, still see them as children.

Sometimes, and not even for the malnourishment and craving of love side, the teens wished for it too.

Film night! 

That was a time they could get lazy on the couch and act tired, or scared depending on the movie, and just stretch their legs across Bill’s, or get under the warm, cozy, laundry detergent smelling throwover with him and their friends, have a little cry together, bond over the shared experience, or even fall asleep on the couch and know they’re not gonna be woken by loud noise or uncaring bustling around.

It was Friday Film Night!  
And tonight there was a sex scene!

Not as good for the chill back and relax with dad vibe.

Not a two second ‘let’s watch them fall on the bed’ one though oh no. This was long, _loud_ , and oh, included nudity. 

Lex had hidden Hannah into her shoulder though, Hannah with her hands over her ears, luckily the actual child not paying attention to it. But no one had seen this film yet, it was a new release, one of the few, so no one had a clue when it was going to end.

When the moaning of the woman got too loud, and a little too real, everyone nearly jumped in their seats, eyes all glued to the screen but not because they _wanted_ to look at it. Whenever someone accidentally touched another, jumping yet again, receding like they or the other were dirty. That’s when Bill finally spoke up, rather loudly too. “We should be desensitised. You know?” He looked singularly down to his daughter who was sitting next to him now, escaping the film, and Alice asked the universe _why_ it had to be her. “So you know you can talk about this stuff with your old man. We-“

“UNNNNHHHHHAH!”

Everyone disliked that.

Bill flushed, finishing his sentence. “We all know what it is!”

Everyone looked at Bill because even _that_ was better than how bad it had gotten on screen, and Alice's eyes were stuck on his, licking her lips uncomfortably, eyes weak. 

“I’d be much more comfortable if we fast forwarded.”

Bill grabbed the remote with blind force staring in the eyes of his daughter. “Me too thank GOD.”

There was definitely one person he felt he could justify babying though and that was Hannah. He realised he’d been giving them all equal amounts of attention, or at least what each individual asked for, but he realised he should probably be giving the younger child a bit more, to be more equitous. Make sure she was holding up alright. 

But on the other hand… Lex was already so good with her, he wouldn’t want to intrude.

However sometimes, Lex just wanted to be a normal teenager. She wanted to hang with her boyfriend, or her friends, and she was finally fully free to make those decisions. Bill stayed with Hannah then. 

Sometimes Lex liked to be alone, everyone liked alone time of course, but sometimes Lex could talk about all sorts of stuff with her friends, or just have a little alone time with her boyfriend, and Hannah would be safe and happy, doing whatever she wanted to do with Bill, even if it was just having him listen to some of her songs. After Bill had gone out and bought her new strings when hers had broken straight away, when she’d spent the hour without knowing how long it’d be without her music crying, not even Lex able to console her, she decided she’d like to show Bill some of her songs. Not all of them, but she trusted him enough to be near him as she sang. And he never told her to shut up. He didn’t even interrupt, he just smiled and was supportive once she’d finished, and she didn’t think she’d needed that before, the songs were mostly for herself, but it did start to make her smile a little after every song now. 

A big plus to all this, Lex didn’t worry when Hannah was with Bill.

Although, sometimes the teens wanting a bit of alone time with their partners wasn’t what everyone else in the house wanted. Bill hated walking in on Ethan and Lex kissing, it was even worse when it was Deb and his daughter! Actually, it was a bit of a toss up really, since Ethan and Lex seemed to not care enough about the risk of being caught very caught up in each other, and the two girls did. Or maybe they just had more self-control. Bill could deal with pecks only feeling a little awkward, but whole make out sessions like he was back in the school hallways again was too much for his eyes!

When classes first started back up, it was a bit of a nightmare. Something not really thought about before.

“Daaaad! Dad!!” Alice had muted herself in her first period, Deb placing her hands on the back of Alice's desk chair and bouncing nervously. 

Hearing the panic in his daughter's voice, Bill ran upstairs, thrusting open the door and looking between the kids in her room.

“Dad!” Alice hissed, even though she was still muted. “There’s a big clash! Debs class starts half way through my bio and- and I don’t know what to do! I can’t miss it but if Deb misses her first online class..!” She was bouncing in her seat too.

Deb was super worried. She’d had to have talks with the principal about how much school she’d missed before, and specifically got an email saying how she was expected to join online and now would have no excuses to skive off. She’d be in major trouble if she missed her very first class, and not only did that suck, but she didn’t want Bill to be involved with that too. Not so soon.

Lex and Ethan watched nervously for the two from Alice's bed too, where they were holding hands, also looking to Bill for guidance. 

Bill could tell they were all freaking, and he moved closer, putting one hand on Alice's shoulder, and the other Debs. “Deb, you can go on my computer, it's fine, you know the room. The password is Al pal with one capital and her birthday.”

Debs eyes lit up, passing her hand over Bill’s with a nod and tight smile, before running off out the room, waving to Alice who waved back. Lex and Ethan quickly decided to follow Deb, leaving Bill to comfort Alice before she got back to actually studying.

When they entered, with Deb, they all looked around before closing the door. “Ooooh we’re in dad’s computer room.” Ethan commented, wrapping his arm around Lex as all three lowly chucked, because that was a thing they’d heard about. 

Deb got straight to typing in the password, even though she had nearly half an hour before her class, and Ethan took that opportunity to steal the leather chair by the desk, and start spinning in it. There was little squeak, and Deb ignored him to type in the schools web page, as Ethan slapped the seat, legs extended out. “Mm. Mmhm, good lumbar support.”

He slowed down his spins, bringing his knees in and patting his legs, and when Deb finally was done with the browser, she leant against the desk as Ethan span in the chair with Lex in his lap, his arms holding the arm rest and his girlfriends waist, Lex’s arm slithered around Ethans neck, and the other importantly poking out to grab at the cupboard and spin them faster and faster each time.

Getting bored at seeing them get a little too cozy in Bill’s chair, Deb stood up, kicking her foot out and brought the chair to a screeching halt. Luckily Ethan had a good enough grip that Lex wasn’t thrown off. “Hey. I want a go.” She shrugged.

The couple held each other closer now, sticking out their middle fingers in sync. “You’ll have your go when your lesson starts, bookworm. Let us spin longer.” Ethan justified.

Deb removed her foot, keeping her eyes on his as he slowly started his spin again, this time leaning the back of the seat farther and father back down, which wasn’t a good idea in the smaller room. Deb just shrugged more passively, once his eyes were too blurry. “As long as you don’t throw up in each other's mouths I don’t really give a shit. Get dizzy.”

At least that made them stop.

At dinner that night Bill listened to the kids joke about school. They made fun of teachers, and complained how unfair it was, meanwhile Bill was so nervous he almost ruined the flambé for dessert! Once he’d finally served it, Ethan noticed his jittery look. “Hey Bill, you good bud?” He asked, pointing to him before leaning on his fists again and smiling reassuringly. The girls all looked to Bill now, and Bill smiled back, as he went round the table. “Aw yeah, nothing much is up. I’m just thinking about how Hannah’s school starts next week, and on Wednesday they’re gonna start work zoom calls too..!” He took a deep breath after that, people waiting for him to say more, but he simply shook his head and sat down, giving them all a comforting smile since he didn’t wanna make them feel nervous, before digging in before the rest of them, leading them to do so too. 

Ethan slapped Bill’s back from where he sat next to him. “Hey, aren’t you glad half your kids are high school dropouts?” He joked. Finally a positive to him and Lex’s choice an adult would see. 

Bill didn’t really know how to respond to that, so he just gave a laugh.

They weren’t his kids anyway so it wasn’t his choice. Not like it would be if he was their father anyway. Besides, they were fine young people, it wasn’t like he was disappointed.

Days later he thanked the delivery driver from across the road and closed the door, box in his arms. “Hey guys! Family meeting!” 

Deb had called it that once so it was okay to say. It was their joke. Haha.

The kids all scurried in from every corner of the house and Bill swore if they’d been snapping their fingers to some tune in unison he would have felt threatened. Instead he set the box down, and the kids all cooed towards the coffee table. Ethan jumped over the back of the sofa landing on it, and accidentally on Alice as she went to take a seat. Deb had blindly pushed Alice further into the far seat with her eyes strictly on the prize, so Ethan just decided to stay there, much to Alice's… joy. Lex sat on the arm of the chair and Hannah held her arm as they all semi circled around Bill, who had his back to the fireplace, face to the kids, and hands unwrapping the box.

They all leant in closer and closer, till Bill pulled the bubble wrapped package out, and slowly began to unravel a sleek black laptop. 

They all looked to him in shock, Bill placing the freed machine on his table, and smiling at them. “Well we needed the extra device. This way we can all get to our work. And maybe even have an extra thing to play on.”

It would have been ideal to have four computers or laptops, for Alice, Deb, Hannah and him since they needed it for work, but well he wasn’t rich. It wasn’t even like he got government money, he wasn’t legally fostering these kids after all. They hadn’t asked.

Once done explaining, all the kids just didn’t know what to say. Even Hannah held her breath. 

Bill looked to them for a reaction, smiling honestly, cheerfully. They just were all so still. Then, adrenaline slightly dropping from their initial surprise, he realised something he hadn’t before. “Why are you sitting on Alice?” 

Ethan and Alice both blinked, in fact all the kids did. Ethan had his arms round Alice's neck and she had hers looped around his waist, they both looked to the free space right by Deb, who had squished against them. Ethan just fiddled in Alice's lap, playing with her hair, shrugging. “She’s my best friend.”

Bill smiled. “Makes sense! Okie dokie!” He got up, ruffled Alice's hair- Alice smirked up at him, then at Ethan’s pout, because _he_ didn’t get his hair ruffled by dad- before Bill went off upstairs, going to try and figure out this darn thing in his computer room.

The extra laptop, was definitely not a waste though.

Bill had an evening of walking in on just Lex and Ethan chatting in the living room late at night, right after finally finishing with that darn machine. They quickly invited him on the chat, and while Bill was truthful to what he’d thought before, he never considered that Ethan and Lex might actually want to go back to school.

Lex grew a little upset into the late night conversation, saying how she felt like she couldn’t do shit because she didn’t have a job anymore and wasn’t even in school like the rest of them. Ethan hugged her, not crying, but revealing the same thing to Bill too. Bill hugged both the kids then, Lex in Ethans lap, Bill above them both, one hand around Ethans head, thumb just rubbing through his curls, the other in Lex’s hair doing much the same, as she had one hand on Ethans upper shirt, and the other Bill’s lower, gripping as she sobbed.

And Bill assured them both they were absolutely not worthless.

He didn’t need them to prove anything to him, for them to deserve his love and trust and a roof over their heads and all these normal things.

He got them both some chamomile tea, a third cold water so they could drink it right then, though he did the math knowing Lex liked hers a little hotter than Ethan, and stayed with them, before taking them upstairs to get some sleep. Asking them to look after each other. 

The next morning, when both were calmer, a more serious discussion was started.

Which classes they both liked, if they both could choose, if they’d like to go back to school, or find a new job. They weren’t allowed any outside influences, no “I’m too stupid” or “I need the money” or “I don’t have the time with Hannah” none of that. Just what they _wanted._

He _really_ didn’t mind what path they chose in life, as long as they were happy. He’d support them throughout it all, no matter what. And if they weren’t happy now, by God he’d make sure of it until the day they left his house! Well, even after that he’d be checking up… ya know?

And then he asked a more important, more finalised, question, making sure if they really wanted him to take a charge.

And so, Bill made some calls. He spoke to Paul, who spoke to Emma, who spoke to Tom, who spoke to the school, and with a little magic, he got both Lex and Ethan reinstated. 

**Only** if they agreed to extra tutoring hours. A bunch of them. 

He could see the condition freaked both of them out, but with a bit more discussion, and it took some effort, but zero pressuring off his side, it was agreed.

Lex loved some classes. Ethan did too. And neither wanted to work shitty jobs anymore. Plus, not that they used this excuse, but they wanted to make Bill proud.

Bill was just ever so grateful when Paul chipped in his old, fully functioning, iPad for their work. He could kiss him! ...He was going to say ‘not that he thought Emma would like that very much’ but he remembered at one very drunken office party an even drunker Emma had snorted when that reality came up, as Ted wondered if that should be their dare, and she told Bill that that was hot. 

Bill did all their extra tutoring hours with them together, he was there whenever they asked, even if he had to be a little pushy at 9am. Blueberry, and chocolate chip pancakes seemed to help sweeten the deal a little. 

But it wasn’t just Bill who helped. The kids all revised together. Well, except for Hannah. 

Especially Alice. She really tried to help Ethan and Lex along, not in a pushy smarmy way though, the others never got an ounce of that, but in a “Oh yeah I know what you mean wait come look at my notes here” way. Sometimes revision was all three trying to help Ethan through his tears and gritted teeth. Sometimes Alice was basically re-teaching the class and she loved it, because studies had shown teaching someone a subject yourself was GREAT revision!

Once past the hurdle of last semester's important blocks, Bill insisted Saturdays were complete days off, except for during exam periods if they wanted, because he wasn’t having those kids so upset, stressed out, or overworked they gave up or worse, their mental health deteriorated. Bill knew firsthand with anxiety, but he wasn’t about to let his kids go through any mental torture.

Sometimes it was hard. He’d see Ethan staring at a book and eventually his head would just fall into his hands, done for the day. That’s when Bill took the book away, even if Ethan forced himself to moan “no wait I can’t give up”, Bill could tell what was good determination and what was bad. 

He’d offered a dyslexia test, explaining to Ethan “NO that does not mean that you’re stupid where the fuck did you hear that?! Pardon my french” and how it could help him get some leeway or extra help in class if he’d like to do the test. After some more explaining about what it actually was, and meant, he agreed. Surprising Bill with a particularly tight and clingy hug at the end of a session, and a “thank you” Bill didn’t even know why he’d gotten. 

A few times Ethan had expressed he just wanted to leave school again, and it shoulda stayed that way. Bill nodded listening to him every time, then when Ethan was done, asked after the quarantine was over, what field would he like to work in and he and Bill could go hunting together. If Ethan wanted him there, of course. He’d see Ethan think for a while, and then immediately get back to his book. It wasn’t like he was trying to use reverse psychology on him or anything, he was genuinely happy to help with whatever future this good young boy- man wanted to build for himself. But Ethan would think of how many jobs he got rejected from, how many he’d seen the application forms qualifications for and nearly fainted, and all the shitty things he’d almost done, and occasionally had done, for money in the past. And Ethan decided crawling to get a minimum of a diploma was gonna be his personal goal. With a side of still wanting to be the best, or at least enough, for his new dad fig-... Even if it was tough, he knew it was the better option for him, it was what _he_ wanted. And he was never gonna be in a better position to reach it, than this. Hey it’d also be a great fuck you and a hey look ma I made it all in one to be the first person in his immediate family to graduate! That oughta help!

Bill would hear Ethan cry in sessions with Alice as he passed the door, and hear his daughter use just the same empathetic tactics he did. 

Alice watched Ethan hide behind his hands and hide the tears, not that he cared the amount of times she’d seen him cry now, the open textbook teasing him from her desk, as she hugged and rubbed his shoulders.

Ethans spit was like lumps in his throat, his hands were all sweaty even though he’d taken his leather gloves off already and he didn’t even think about the headache and eye strain because he knew how badly he was crying. He used his hands to slam the book shut, eyes red and staring. “I’m _stupid Ali Cat!_ ”

“HEY!” Alice grabbed his face, it was so frantic he was almost startled, simultaneously scared for another reason, unable to rub his eyes and only look into Alice’s, who looked a mix between determinedly cold and angrily fierce, as his tears still spilt. “No you’re not! Don’t you ever talk about yourself like that! That is NOT true!!” Alice shook his trembling pale cheeks whenever she spoke, lightly but a bit stubbornly too. She was not a strict teacher, but she was harsh about this fact. She took in a shaky breath, even though her words had been perfectly loud and clear, and dropped his face, maybe going to hug him as a break for tonight, but expecting him to get back to his book and forget about it. 

Instead she had to grip her desk as Ethan tackled her, hugging under her arms and leaning his head on her collarbone, even though he was much taller than her, just shaking. Alice removed her firm hands from her desk and led them to Ethans back and hair, assuredly moving through them there. 

Ethan, Deb, Lex and Hannah all had a secret joke: like father, like daughter.

Lex only cried the time she threw her book, and then felt bad for acting out and sure Bill would be mad at her for it. Like he was ever mad. Sometimes she’d be too down to want to get out of bed and start the days work. And if bacon and cranberry muffins didn’t help her out, he gave her a little extra rest till she wanted to join Ethan, even if it wasn’t till the afternoon. Ethan was the opposite mostly, always anxious to start and catch up, and soon enough on an advised ban from coffee till midday. The first day they started was the only time they’d been slightly startled of Bill, nodding very fast as he told them how their mental health was so much more important than their studies and that if they ever forced themselves to not put that first or didn’t feel they could tell him when they needed a break he'd kick their heads. 

They had to be in a secret pact with him about the extra chocolate they got during study downers.

But after the initial month or so of hard extra tutoring, he started to see the opposite. He started to see Lex and Ethans mental health get even better. They’d seemed fine before but holy hell was more of their confidence not a stubborn facade right now. He smirked whenever he listened to them _all_ complain about school together. Ethan and Lex had trouble keeping up with those conversations before!

Even if Ethan cried as Alice, Deb, and Lex all cheered behind him, the three girls helping him finish his final test of the semester on time, knowing Ethan had put himself down being the furthest behind all of them in nearly every single subject, even behind Hannah in some, they gave up their time to study only with and for Ethan, and with the hugs and screams of cheers, and occasionally them reading out to him when it just got too much, Ethan soared higher than he ever had in classes his entire life. Bill very angrily replied back to a teacher who had emailed him to ask if any cheating was going on, and the reply email he accidentally sent to the entire schools classes and teachers for the subject, outlined how bad the system was, how some people needed different methods, how teachers should trust and want their students to do better, and how Ethan was an exceptional, extraordinary, and _excellent_ kid. How all the teens with him were. Not one to be embarrassed easily, Ethan owned it, and all the kids in their school started calling him ‘Kill (the bourgeoisie) Bill’ after that’s what the schools online newspaper titled him. It was literally the frontline title. Not that Bill knew any of this. He didn’t even know Ethan had seen the email, or that he’d replied to the entire subjects mailing list. All he knew was Ethan was very proud he recognised and knew the word bourgeoisie, and that literally no one in the house knew how to spell it.

One proud (-er than usual) moment for Bill came when he was doing his Sunday crossword puzzle, and Ethan pointed out 14 down for him. Bill had, for some reason, been spelling it the British way inside his head. Once he wrote it down in pen and saw it with the other word connected to it, he looked up and saw Ethan just beaming down at the words, eyes fixated on them. He pat him on the back from where he was sitting, letting Ethan get a sticker from the pack Ethan had bought as a joke but now the kids really liked. God he was happy for his son. His- his daughters… best friend..? Ehh, he’d figure it out!

Not that this meant Bill neglected the other kids or played favourites though. Alice was so much smarter than him, he’d known this for years, and boy was he proud of his job! She was very good at studying too, so unless she asked him something like a definition of a word (which she used to just google), or he was there for moral support, or to get a snack during her lay down break, he left her to it, knowing she was happier without him lingering over her back. 

He helped Deb a quite little too, though she mostly asked Alice for help. Trying to help her train for P.E. ended with him being coddled by all the kids, who were quizzing themselves on the ethics of breaking into a hospital for back braces and Hannah calling 911 from fear. One person he helped most with school, was Hannah. 

The others didn't have the same classes to revise with her, and while she still asked Lex for stuff a lot, as time went on, almost all her work sessions were done with Bill at the kitchen table while she had her snack. 

Lex really appreciated that. Because she never had time for anything let alone her own studies, when she was trying to make this world better for Hannah, at least let her get a good education. She’d told Bill she wasn’t even helpful when she was stupid, being a drop out who’d focused more on Hannah’s work then her own and all, and she only apologised, to herself not Bill, for saying she was stupid when she reaslied she’d get a hug at the end for it. Bill didn’t hug them loads, she supposed he didn’t want to invade, and they didn’t exactly initiate them out of pure awkwardness, but all the teens knew any chance they got, they were jumping on their dad (figure).

But Lex had had no time for her studies before, to a lesser extent neither had Ethan, but now with no jobs, no babysitting, a quarantine… and the fact they didn’t need money to support themselves, or her kid sister, as Bill paid for everything they needed, well… they were free to be kids. To do what they want, and make their own choices. Though she and Ethan begged Deb not to tell Bill when Ethan accidentally kidney punched her a little too hard when she joked that ‘no true teen would choose school, you guys are just nerds’.

Alice broke the tension, once Deb was alright and promised not to tell for a pack of smokes they next sneakily bought, and the others weren’t having a panic attack that they were gonna be thrown out for violence, by sighing “Welp!.. at least by the time school reopens and we hang out in the smoke club area we’ll all actually be enrolled there instead of half of us trespassing!”

It got a few laughs. Then the half laughs turned into real ones at other people’s fake laughs and soon they were all crying and rolling around on the floor, struggling to breathe. In a pure, wholesome, and non virusy way.

Bill was having a peaceful cup of joe downstairs. His news bloopers were on, all the kids were entertaining themselves. Everything was quiet in his home.

“HAHAHAHAHHAH!!!”  
“HAHAHAHHAAA!!!!”  
“AHAHAHAHA!!”  
“HAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!!”

At first Bill heard all the laughing. That was nice. It was loud, but sweet. He looked up at the ceiling to Alice's room, smiling at it, then back down to his coffee. He had a good half a minute with his coffee.

“AAAAAAHHH!!!”  
“AAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!!”  
“AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!”  
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!”

Then he heard the screaming.

A lot of screaming. It kept coming. Occasionally he thought it blurred into laughter but he wasn’t sure. Jogging upstairs, just in case, he passed a curious looking Hannah doing… something, in his room, then he got further on the landing, just before Alice ran out of her room, bursting to grab hold onto the bannister the force she got outta dodge, running towards her dad when she saw him. A scary smile, too frenzied and panicked to simply be happy, on her face.

“Hi dad! Soooo, Ethan strapped all my old barbie dolls to the ceiling fan in my room, but now it’s broken on full speed and we’re all too scared to get them. Also Debs got a scratch on her head. Can you come turn it off?”

The things Bill did for his kids eh? Even though it was very stressful, he had to admit, the memory of him wrangling a fan raining barbies, while four teenagers screamed huddled against the wall of the room would be one that stuck with him forever.

Sometimes Bill actually did get peace and quiet though. He’d say he missed the kids but… it wasn’t that often… Sometimes they’d all go on walks together! About all they could do to get out the house, and months in everything seemed so much more exciting.

Bill sat playing his flappy bird rip off game when the door opened, he closed his phone and turned to the five teenagers, who took off their muddy shoes, having explored the woods nearby again. The ones who didn’t live here before seemed to enjoy the edge of it only being about a ten - fifteen minutes walk away. But before he could even get out his usual ‘hey guys!’ they all turned to him with bright faces.

“Bill! Guess what?!” Lex asked first, all the others nodding along excitedly. He looked between his teens faces, seeing the pure adrenaline and immediately he feared this story did not start out a happy one because of the relief that was there. “What? Oh no did someone question you guys about the same household thing?” He kept presuming that may happen. Four teens the exact same age and there were definitely some psychical differences, he got worried about nosy Hatchetfield neighbours. He worried for his kids, but Alice shook her head. “No!”

Ethan burst. “We saw a dog!”

Bill teased all their eager, _thrilled_ faces. His own purposely moved to match theirs, nodding. “Oh a dog? That’s nice!” Actually to be fair, Bill would also be happy to see a pupper at this rate. That’s what’s the kids called them right? He loved it.

“It came up to us.” Deb told him.

“So no one said we couldn’t pet it.” Lex affirmed.

Even Hannah nodded, bouncing uncontrollably under Lex’s hands. “It was so cute!”

Bill, not a downer on the kids excitement, and a dog lover, rapped his hands against his knees. “What kind?!”

“Chocolate lab- HEY!”  
“Chocolate lab- HEY!”

Ethan and Deb pointed at each other. Oh this reminded him of a spider man picture the kids had shown him before!

“You said I could tell him!” Deb whined.

Ethan scoffed, crossing his arms. “As if L-I-A-R!” He spelt out.

There was a pause. Then both teens were wrestling each other on the ground, rolling into the house. Bill leapt over them as they passed. It hurt his back. “Well it’s nice you kids had a good time. Wanna wash your hands please gang?”

That wasn’t the only time the kids went out though.

“Hey Bill?! We’re gonna go meet the others at the park!”

Before Bill could rush through the kitchen door, Ethan ended his girlfriend's statement “Socially distanced!”

The four older teens were all suited up, and Bill took Hannah’s shoulder under his arms, holding gently as he’d never seen Lex shake her doing it so wasn’t sure if she liked it - he just hadn’t caught Ethan doing it yet.

“Alright! You kids have fun! And stay safe!” He added that last bit a tad more seriously, but he knew it was good for them to meet up with other kids. Even if it was the two others he had only heard a few… rebellious wasn’t the right word, _dumbass_ stories of. He trusted them to be safe! Well… okay he trusted Alice to keep them mostly in check. Mostly…

Before he could worry too much Hannah looked up at him as the door closed, and Bill smiled warmly down at the youngest, turning her cap just a centimetre on the top of her head. He beamed. “Well, I guess someone’s got the banoffee brownie mixture all to their self!” He supplied enthusiastically.

Hannah bounced on the tops of her feet, taking Bills hand and already leading him to the kitchen. “I can let you have the spoon.” She offered endearingly, looking to him just… tranquilly. Bill smiled. “Why think you sweetie. You know, I just might take you up on that offer..!” He did a little dad jig, carefully nudging Hannah who giggled, getting the bowls out naturally from their top centre cupboard. 

_“Oh guys, please sshh!”_ Alice begged in a whisper, immediately upon opening the door later that night, or rather later in the morning, Ethan fell into Lex who fell into Deb who fell into the wall. All three laughed, so hard it came out silently, in just shakes and tears. It took them too long to try and pick themselves back up, and Alice had to set Ethan onto his feet, so Lex and Deb weren’t squished and could actually stand.

But standing Ethan up was a chore on its own. She eventually lugged him into a straight position, and Ethan blinked for a while, as if unsure how he’d got there. Then he turned to Alice and smiled sweetly, closing his eyes as his head fell on her shoulder. “Aw, you’re soooo cute.” With him purring into her shoulder, he forced his head up and laid a long wet peck to her cheek, giving an extended “Mwwwwwwah!” sound and Alice tried to bat him off, Lex and Deb snickering together, arms linked though Alice doubted that would help either of them.

“Aw Ethan the big sap!” Lex called out, giving Deb a cheek kiss too and Deb laughed, giving her own back, Ethan watching them through barely peeked open, very glazed over, eyes, all laugh mumbling. Alice tried to hold his arm because he kept slipping. “Okay guys, you've had your fun. Now _please_ , upstairs before dad sees you like this!”

She couldn’t believe she’d let them drink and smoke multiple joints. It was their first party and boy had they either gone hard, forgotten their limits, or become lighter weights since quarantine and their lack of supplies. She tried to herd them towards the stairs, when Ethan stood straight, swaying uncomfortably far, and looked to the two girls behind him, or somewhere in between. “You heard her!” He whisper yelled, his voice hoarse. Alice didn’t care if he was agreeing she just wanted him in _bed._

“Upstairs!”

With speed she didn’t know a drunk and high man could have, Ethan turned around, grabbed Alice's legs, and swooped her onto his shoulder. Alice let out a scream, before slapping her hand over her mouth. Ethan turned towards his girlfriend and friend, with a shocked laugh, Alice couldn’t see anything because she was _upside down staring at his chest._

“She’s the one being loud!” Lex yelled. Alice wanted to scream more, the way Ethan was swaying, clearing his throat and grabbing the bottom of the stair bannister, still readjusting her in his arms.

“Traitor traitor-!” Deb started. Then Lex joined in, then Ethan.

“Traitor traitor traitor!” They chanted lowly all the way up the stairs, Ethan somehow managing to get himself and Alice all the way up them, she swore, she’d never thrown up on anyone but her dad, but that moment could have been the day, still, they reached the landing safely. All the drunk and high ones giggling as they passed Bill's door, slapping each other and sometimes accidentally hitting Alice, who was still being held a poor hostage, before running into Alice's room, knowing Hannah was in the spare room by the way she kept the door closed tight.

Once in there Ethan grunted, and Alice felt his hands on her hips before “Fuckin YEET!” He threw her onto her own bed. Lex came up to him and smirked, hands on his free chest and Ethan seemed so very pleased with himself that he was also free, holding Lex’s hands to his chest and purring down at her, literally. Then he grabbed her chin and was eating her face. Alice pouted from where she’d been thrown, rubbing her elbow when Deb came to join her, very much falling on the bed without the possibility of pretending she was doing anything else. 

“Are you alright?” 

Alice thought she at least was caring, sobering up enough to ask that, she started nodding, about to say something when the second she nodded, she was pinned to the bed, Deb sitting on top of her and closing Alices mouth with a kiss. Alice just gave a startled squeak, not kissing back yet.

“Aw no fair! We wanna get the bed too!”

“Foursome!” 

Alice pushed Deb away, looking as her hooded eyes went straight to Alice's neck instead, but Alice pushed her shoulder further so she undoubtedly got the message. “Babe you remember my rules? No kissing when you’re this out of it. And you are way past my limit.” Lex’s last line had definitely helped Alice's mind startledly learn this kiss was not what she wanted right now.

Lex groaned, Alice hoped it wasn’t at the loss of a possibility of a foursome, and Deb got off her, eyes softening. Almost not utterly _obliterated._ “I’m sorry babyyy…” her voice was a drawl, leaning on words for too long and she stroked Alice's hair, pulling her cardigan further up her shoulders again. “Are you okay? I’m sorry… jus’ wan’ed to kiss you.. mmfh ‘m sorry, you alrigh’?” Alice nodded, stroking Deb’s hair back, behind her ear, pinned by her beanie. “Oh no no I’m okay! Don’t worry. Just didn’t want you to get the wrong message.” She leant up, speaking into Deb’s free ear now “I’ll definitely be up for some of that if you’re sober enough in the morning.” She leant down again, admittedly, feeling a little naughty. And Deb purred. “You… fuckin’ tease! Bill better have some fuckin’... worsesesesshirt sauce…”

Alice giggled, cheeks like her cardigan, meanwhile Ethan spoke up, first half cut off by what was clearly a kiss. “Orrrrrshire sauce?” He tried/made fun of.

Alice looked over and saw Lex’s neck literally glistening under her fairy lights. “Worsechechecheir sore?” Lex couldn’t even get the last word.

They all looked to Alice. Who simply shrugged. “I still don’t know how to say it!”

They all burst into laughter, and Alice would have too, if that didn’t remind her of her original charge. She sat up with her legs off the bed now. “Oh guys please don’t wake my dad!” She begged, begging God not to let her dad wake too. 

Ethan laughed at that, then immediately crashed and burned, stumbling over the slightly open cupboard door and falling onto the floor. Alice groaned but sympathetically came and picked Ethan up off the floor, holding his arm and taking him over to her mattress, sat him down with her. “I just want you in _bed!_ ”

Ethan looked with squinted eyes to her, confused but now, no longer swaying. Alice raised an eyebrow back, before Ethan cleared his throat. “No thank you, not tonight, I’m gay.”

Lex threw her hands up, smiling. “Aw c’mon man! At least you felt you could tell me.”

Alice scoffed in awe between the two, three actually, Deb not stepping in, and pulled Ethans arm till he was sat straight with her, as he was sliding off the frame this whole time. “No- I think you mean _I’m_ gay.”

Fully, at least.

“Pshaw!” Ethan said, waving his hand in Alices face and dragging it down hers at the same time by accident. “You don’t know me! But good for you too though, gbff.”

Ethan somehow got up on his own and sauntered off, going towards Deb since Lex was coming to take up that very close spot next to Alice now. Who just held her head in her hands for a second, till she was joined. 

Lex kept sauntering over, luckily Alice's floor was clean today, until she sat on the bed right next to Alice, wrapping her arms around her and Alice held her back for support. “Oh alley-Alice you’re cute.” She closed her eyes before leaning in to kiss Alice's cheek, Alice patting Lex’s back but a little surprised. Actually this was her first cheek kiss off Lex. Lex leant back, and her head immediately fell past her shoulders. She just swung there, arms loosely around Alice. Alice's legs tightened, also begging God for Lex to not throw up in her lap right now, but instead Lex’s head just fell into it, resting there and moaning muffled against her legs. 

Ethan pointed from his corner. “Hey Prince Ali is the only one who hasn’t kissed someone first here!” No one understanding what the point was, the two who didn’t have their heads in someone's lap and were possibly unconscious looked to him confused, Ethan just snorted “Whatta loser!”

“Lex? Leeeexx? Are you alright? Do you want some water?” Alice gently prodded her, she didn’t have enough confidence to shake her right now. Surprisingly not dead blacked out, Lex threw her head off Alice's lap and smiled goofily, eyes closed but the whites just a little shown where she hadn’t closed them properly. “Nope! You got any booze though?”

Alice stroked through her hair “No. I think that’s en-“

“Woohoo! Keep this party going, that’s what I say! That’s why I’m in love with you babe!” Ethan slapped his hands together, pointing at Lex. Then he looked down at his own body. “Wait, fuck, I thought I was sitting down this entire time.”

Lex just pointed vaguely back at him, eyes still mostly closed “You're my bitch too babe!” She got out, in some semblance of what he’d said. It was good enough for both of them. But when Ethan creeped closer onto Alice's bed, his knees resting on hers in a miscalculation, leaning towards Lex, Alice backed away with her in her arms. “Oh no you two are not making out on top of me!”

The three wasted ones looked to each other, then Ethan stroked Lex’s hair back further “Well babe, guess your dream of a foursome will have to wait another day.” 

Alice almost threw Lex back at him, so she had a free hand to slap him with. When he got her though, he chuckled at Alice, before lightly shaking Lex awake, just seeing her face and making sure she was alright, telling her some jokes to keep her alert. 

Deb rested her head on Alice's lap now it was free, and pulled her girlfriends hand onto her hair. “So we keeping this party going or WHAT?”

“SSSHH!!” Alice quickly scoured the three smiley faces, and groaned. “Do you guys really want to stay up all night being stupid while my dad’s in one room and Hannah in the other?”

They couldn’t all look at each other, faces were hard right now, but they all nodded till their heads hurt.

“Yeah”

“Yuh huh”

“Get with the fuckin program Ali!!.. I still love you though you’re still my girlfriend.”

It wasn’t like she could do much. She certainly wasn’t getting to sleep in this room anyway. At least they mostly only wanted to play games or chat or all cuddle together. So she guessed she wasn’t sleeping.

Actually, knowing the horniness of everyone else in the room, it was probably good. Her dad would probably be confused why they were all still asleep at 5pm, but it was better than the alternative.

It was at least definitely better than that time they came back and tried to sneak a goose into the house. But Alice had a panic attack even thinking about that memory.

They didn’t party hard a lot though. But sometimes… they still wanted to relax. Have a lil fun. Have a lil freedom. Be a bit of a rebellious teen.

Deb joined them in the back garden, being waved over by her other two friends.

“Hurry hurry!” They didn’t get much chance to smoke, not a lot of time either. Not that Bill smothered them but well, they didn’t wanna be suspicious. Sure sometimes they could go to the park to do it but honestly it was safer here if it was dope. And sometimes they didn’t even want a sesh, sometimes they just wanted a quick cigarette. 

They were, however, scared Bill would smell it. So Lex always brought her sprays out with her.

It was nice to have some of their own money still, so they were free to buy stuff without anyone else knowing, and this time Lex had bought the pack. Lex, Deb and Ethan had been outside for less than three minutes, chatting a little in between, they were hardly stress smoking, and just looked up to the too sunny a sky for Hatchetfield. How many months in the quarantine had it been now?

The backdoor started to unlock, and every teen threw their hands holding their cig behind their backs, Lex got her bottle out and sprayed like a mad woman, getting some on Ethans poor face, with the frequency and quantity of sprays, backing together against the wall, and simultaneously finding the worst person who could have come out with them, whilst putting on the biggest smiles. 

Bill looked up at them with a big ole Bill smile, garbage bags in his hands. “Hey kids. Did you know you locked the door?” He turned to it confused, not thinking anyone was out here with it locked. 

Lex, took one for the team, and dropped her cigarette, standing on it and from her hidden hand, produced the back door key. “Ah, force of habit.”

Even though these kids had the worst fake smiles anyone could have seen, they definitely wouldn’t get into the Starlight’s next show once they reopened, Bill just smiled and got on with his chore. “Oh I won’t lock it behind me anyway.” He smiled, before casually starting to walk towards them. The other two dropped and squashed their cigarettes subtly and fast too, still beaming. “But hey, games night tonight! You just wanna come in and do the vote in a bit?” He said enthusiastically.

The kids all nodded, faces slightly relaxing but sure they were gonna get caught now Bill was this close. 

“Sure!” Deb laughed.

Lex agreed. “Wouldn’t miss it!”

“Yeah, course man!” Ethan grinned. That’s when Bill blinked at him, and tilted his head, a different kind of smile on his face. One of… surprise?

All three shared a brain cell and simultaneously had the same thought. ‘Fuck.’

But they kept their cool. Right as Bill smiled at the boy who’d finished the most of his smoke. 

The girls stepped closer to him in the middle, leaning against his sides for support, that’s when they smelt…

“Oh that’s a nice fragrance you got there Ethan bud.” Bill nodded, not seeming at all judgemental of the smell, just complimenting it.

The strongest, over powering, odour, was Lex’s body spray. By far. And it was exuding off of Ethan.

Ethan smiled wide, the others girls laughing under their breath beside him. “Hey, thanks bad! Uhm!”

Now the eyes all squinted to him. The threat before didn’t make him sweat, but this did. And it definitely wasn’t the spray dripping down his face. “Uh, I swear I’m not stupid-“

“No one here thought that.” Bill nodded assuredly.

“It’s just that- I-I got ‘Bill’ and ‘bud’ mixed up! Aha! That’s all!” Ethan copied Bill’s gesture, and nodded back.

Bill relaxed a little understanding that easy mistake, when he frowned confused. “Well then where did the ‘a’ come from in the names?”

Bill was the only dumbass to not think about the implications, while the three teens who adored him kicked the dirt under their boots, covering their litterings. Ethan laughed very loudly, linking arms with the girls “HAHA I dunno dyslexia things I guess I’m new to it well not having it but knowing it okay bye!”

No pauses, Ethan hadn’t even finished his sentence by the time he started leading the two in, ready for a games night. 

Well shit, Lex had hoped even if she’d sacrificed her own smoke she could have at least shared with Ethan. Well, she supposed she’d have to wait till another time. Damn Bill making her have healthy habits. Even if they all knew he wouldn’t punish them for it, that wasn’t their fear in the slightest. They just couldn’t really deal with him being disappointed in them in the slightest. 

Bill watched them leave, smiled, shrugged, and locked the door behind him, getting ready for the worst election night he’d certainly have to endure.

Sometimes differing opinions weren’t just about games though.

“EW it crawled right across my fucking foot!” Lex leapt out the bathroom, bare footed in her pyjamas and jumping out her skin, the others, who were just waking up or waiting to use the bathroom themselves, all looked over, including Ethan who took Lex’s shoulders and gently looked behind her, noticing the thick brown spider slowly moving it’s way around the tiled floor. Already dressed for their walk, boot to earring, Ethan slapped Lex’s shoulders playfully and smiled to her, full teeth, “Don't worry babe.” He got out before anyone else could intervene. “I got it!”

Ethan moved into the bathroom with purpose, standing over the spider and looking around for something. Then quickly giving up with a shrug. He raised his boot, right over the spider, and that's when Hannah ran in. “NO!!” She physically shoved Ethan back, who raised his hands in question, a bit taken aback.

Hannah knelt down by the spider, looking up at Ethan upset, then the others behind her. “Don’t hurt her! She’s a friend.”

Lex looked apologetically, to Ethan or Hannah it was hard to say, while Ethan rolled his eyes, until he was looking a bit disgusted to Hannah as she cupped her hands on the floor and the spider slowly but confidently moved into them. Bill walked in front of Deb and Alice, nodding his head to Hannah, as the girl stood up, hands clasped firmly, but gently, looking down at her new friend, then to the one in charge of the house they both were staying in. Luckily, she could tell just by looking into his eyes, what he was going to say. 

“Too right Hannah.” Bill nodded affirmatively, tutting at the girls behind him who shivered, even though he knew Alice and Deb were on the vegetarian, vegan thing. “Spiders have feelings too. We could easily let it- her, free.” He corrected. Bill didn’t like to kill bugs anyway. 

Hannah nodded, keeping her nod but just slowing it, as she looked to her hands instead of the others, knowing where her friend was by where she tickled her. “You shouldn’t hurt her. She’s innocent.” She looked up to Ethan with what he could only guess what judgement, and he threw his hands up again, this time in more surrender. He didn’t like being ganged up on. Hannah went back to her spider. “Especially when she’s carrying innocent babies.”

“BABIES?! EUGH!” Ethan literally leaped to the side of Hannah, running out of there and shivering, brushing through his hair as Lex swept over his shoulders, checking for spiders and in a mix of a comforting gesture. 

Now was Alices turn to gag. “Okay but I’ve seen those videos of pregnant spiders getting smacked, it’s probably a good thing you didn’t step on her.” Just imagining it… ooh she’d have to move house. Quarantine from _that._

“Definitely a good thing.” Hannah said, knowing she couldn’t see her friend through the gaps in her hand, she didn’t want her to escape just yet, even if that’s what she wanted, she could get hurt! Hannah tried to calm her through her touch. 

And Bill did much the same. He gently touched Lex and Ethans shoulders, Ethan jumping out of his skin a little again, and both moved back, Bill talking their place then going even further waiting for Hannah to give him the A-Okay with her eyes, before placing his own hands gently on both her shoulders, guiding her out the bathroom. “C’mon Hannah banana. We’ll bring Webby’s friend outside. Set her and her babies free there.”

Hannah looked up to him in slight awe, and Bill smiled back, leading her outside as the other teens parted like the sea. She just kept her eyes up on her dad as he led her and Webby’s friend outside. Webby had told her this was her new father now. She didn’t know why Lex had told her not to call him that before. Especially when she knew Lex wanted to too. “You really think she’s Webby’s friend?” She asked, not fully convinced but wanting to believe. She’d like to think she was a present from Webby. A little hello. Especially since she hadn’t heard from Webby in a few days. It was getting scary.

Bill, in all honesty, had just almost called the spider Webby, because it felt like a spiders name. Then he remembered of Webby who Hannah happily spoke about all the time, like a best friend, except Webby seemed more than that to Hannah. Well he was sure glad she had somebody. And that he’d caught himself so as to not confuse her, or make her think he didn’t listen. He gently pat his fingers against her shoulders, keeping the pads of his hands attached. “I think you have friends all around you in this world Hannah. And I think Webby would want you to know that too.”

The kind father smiled once more and Hannah smiled back, her dad opening the door for her as she still had her hands occupied, and once on the front lawn, he let her go, as she bent down and let the mother go, both watching her scuttle off, even though Hannah knew it was hard with her babies. Bill waved, and then Hannah did too. 

“Goodbye Webby’s friend!” Bill called out, smiling and breathing in the outside air deeply.

Hannah walked backwards until she couldn’t see her old friend anymore, and once she was backed into Bill’s front, she leant her head against his chest, pretending she could still see her friend as she let Bill’s warmth keep her company. Pretended she still had company.

Meanwhile Bill just lit up like a Christmas tree inside at this sort of hug, and he leant one hand fondly on top of Hannah’s hair, where there was no cap today, sort of hugging her back.

It was 3:30am that night when Bill woke to his door being burst open rather unceremoniously, the hallway light flooded in and he wiped his eyes, not alert enough to the figure running towards his bed, until they were on top of his bed, right next to him and crying. That’s when he noticed, it was the youngest of the bunch. “Hannah?”

“Webby really is gone.” She sat on his bed, crying, hiccuping, sniffling. Bill sat up, hazy. Hannah didn’t even wipe at her eyes, why bother? Her songs weren’t working and Webby wasn’t coming back. She’d never been gone for this long. This was so unlike her. _She needed her. The nightmares were coming…_

How could she just abandon her? What if something happened to her? ...What if something had happened to _her?_

Bill turned on his lamp, voice a bit high but simultaneously rough. He rubbed Hannah’s arm, squinting, blinking. “Whadyou mean? Where’s she gone?”

Hannah just cried, they sounded so little, but they were from deep inside. They were helpless and wholeheartedly frightened. She looked up into his eyes, the last person Webby had told her she could trust. Webby said this man would be important to her. Webby was gone. Hannah cried. “I’m _scared._ ”

Hearing her voice shake so, woke Bill up immediately. His father instincts raged and kicked down the door, and he opened his arms, Hannah bursting into them ; her whole body was closed in on itself though, not hugging Bill back, but that’s fine, he didn’t need that. Hannah pulled at her pigtails and covered her face, her knees tucked into her fetal style. And she just cried against her dad. Webby had said this was her dad now. That he’d protect her. But that was supposed to be Webby’s job too. Bill couldn’t help with nightmare time. Where was she?!

Bill pat through her hair, breathing out shallowly through his lips. Boy oh boy, was he rusty at being a father? 

Hannah sobbed as if she was in pain, cheeks red and clutching her hands dangerously hard, thank God she picked at her nails. Still, Bill held over the tops of her hands, squeezing them himself, not stopping her comfort clenching, and eventually, Hannah’s hands stopped piercing so hard, just feeling Bill’s squeeze rhythmically. She tried to focus on how they felt stronger, but gentler. Eventually her hearty wheezes and cries that they’d evolved into, turned into shakes and soft breaths, mumbles and whimpers and broken tunes tumbling past her lips, picking at her fingers like movement on strings. And Bill bit his lip. If this had happened years ago he might have tried to explain how this all was a good thing. How Webby was her imaginary friend and how it was a sign she was growing up, into a fine young woman no less. But this was his second chance with such a young, and even more sensitive, child. Who cared about semantics when she was _hurt?_ “Have you spoken to Lex about this yet?”

Hannah stayed shaking for a moment, as if unable to be in this world, to hear the words, but hums tumbled as if she was trying to mumble something out, and her eyes were starch open. Eventually, her lips moved. “Told her about Webby a few days ago. She said it was _good_ , that she was gone. That it was good for me.” She told Bill accusatively. 

Bill sighed, nodding and closing his lips to think before he spoke. He was glad at least Lex hadn’t used the ‘crazy’ word around her, that this was good because it meant she wasn’t crazy. Not that he’d _ever_ heard her say it, in fact she fought against it, only Ethan and Deb had, which was one of the few times he’d ever told them off, when saying it in front of her, but he knew at the same time, as the years got on, Webby concerned Lex quite a bit, along with some of the other things her younger sister would say, or do. But seeing Hannah so devastatingly distraught… this was worse. Lex wouldn’t want this. Then, he squeezed her shoulders. “Maybe tell her about tonight. She’s not gonna want you upset, and she’ll be able to help you. Just like she’s always helped you.”

Hannah, knowing he was right, and knowing her big sister always looked after her, and was the first to get that position of protector off of Webby, in fact, that was one of her first memories of Webby talking to her, nodded and sniffed. She got out of his bed, stumbling to the door before running out with a “Lexi?!..” her tears clear in her voice. 

Bills heart just broke. But he was also still exhausted. He wiped his face, moving over to close his bedroom door, not fully in case Hannah or Lex needed him, and fell face first back into bed, turning off the lamp. Man it’d been years since he’d had a daughter run into his room like that. Last time Alice had done it she was… fourteen? Just older than Hannah… God that poor girl. He curled up under his covers then, changing his usual sleep routine to keep his face directed towards the door, just in case she needed to come back in, he’d be more alert for her this time, more able to help. He was glad she could find him though, when she needed someone to help. Even throughout all the worry and hurt for her, that at least made him want to smile.

It was about five days later when Hannah came into Bill’s room in the morning, no knocking, her hands clasped over something small again, except this time it just popped out, still slightly hidden against her chest. Bill couldn’t even get out a question, apart from the “WHOssick?!” he woke up with, until Hannah started speaking, still moving forward. “Bill? I couldn’t find a spider, but I brought a new friend, to say thank you.”

She opened her palms and in her hands, was the tiniest kitten, scraggly and definitely only a baby. Not a newborn, thank God, but it had barely learnt how to meow properly yet, as shown by the tiny yell it gave, being exposed to more light. Hannah just beamed down at it, and whilst Bill’s eyes were wide and white, he did too. “Holy cow. Hannah how did you not find a spider but found a whole kitten? Where did you find her?” He opened his hands up for the cat, amazed, but Hannah lifted the tiny creature to her face, giggling as if she was purely happy as it nuzzled against her, giving a truer giggle than Bill had ever heard from the kid when it licked her nose. “She was wandering. She was lost.” She held the cat more surely in her hand, stroking down its back and looking at Bill. “It’s raining outside you know?”

Looking out through his window, Bill saw it was pouring down. It was definitely gonna be stormy today, Donna had said so last night. He looked back down to Hannah, who had sat on his bed and had the kitten on its back in her lap. She was tickling it’s tummy with her single finger, laughing as the kitten tried to grab at it, playing. Bill knew anyone else would feel the same, well maybe except for her mother, but looking at this kid so purely happy for once, almost animated, it was rare. It was a nice sight, Hannah smiling fully like this. And plus, the baby was adorable. “Okay. Let’s go get her some water, maybe some fish too.” He suggested, opening his arm and leading Hannah downstairs. It was talking all his adult composure to not ask the thirteen year old girl if he could hold the kitten for a little bit.

Hannah held her cat very carefully, taking them both downstairs. “Milk?” She added instead once she was safely at the bottom of the stairs, she thought they’d like a treat. But Bill shook his head, still with his everlasting smile though. “Nah, cats are actually lactose intolerant wouldn’t ya know!”

“Oh.” Hannah scratched her kits little head, watching the fur move over their eyes funnily. “I didn’t know.”

When the other teens woke up at their much more normal time, Alice first, they all noticed the cat straight away. Except Deb and she complained it was because it was too small to see.

Alice was the first down, she walked over and touched her dad’s shoulder “Good morning.” Wondering how tired he was to be putting water into a bowl, then she slipped over to Hannah, a more lighter hand on her shoulder “Good-“

“Don’t scream. You might scare her.”

Alice froze, looking down at the tiny baby kitten in Hannah’s cupped hands. She looked over at her dad. If she’d hidden a goose, a dog and one very angry chicken from her dad that the other teens brought in only to have her perfect score tarnished now… well at least it’d be tarnished by something adorable. But as her dad brought over the water bowl she relaxed a little. Until her mouth opened to ask a question, but upon realising there were too many to possibly begin, she just decided to watch for a while. 

Bill put down the bowl and Hannah, holding the kitten the entire way, put the cat down right next to the bowl. She gently tapped her towards it. The cat trod over, peered into the bowl, stuck its head over - it couldn’t quite reach - then it’s two front feet, and then it fell into the shallow bowl, Hannah yelling and scrambling to pick her up. Alice and Bill laughed at how fucking cute that was, wishing it was recorded, whereas Hannah was drying her on her plaid shirt horrified. “Don’t laugh if she’s hurt!” She urged them, knowing that was a basic rule of life, or at least should be, but Bill quickly swept in. “Oh no no we wouldn’t laugh if it was dangerous, she’s fine see? Promise.” He leant a little over Hannah and pointed to the kitten, and when the corner of Hannah’s shirt moved away from its face, it batted at its whiskers, and did nothing else but look up into the youngest Fosters eyes, and try another meow. 

Lex woke up to the sound of her sister giggling. An occasional breathy laugh, yeah that wasn’t so outta bounds, but proper giggles like this? They weren't as common. Finally moving Ethans heavy arm off her waist and ignoring his sleepy mumbles carried by his morning breath, she got out of bed and didn’t even get dressed, hearing the sounds of Hannah, then Alice then Bill, get even clearer. 

“Hey Hannah banan’?” She got out at the bottom of the stairs. Instead of coming to hug her though, Hannah only turned her head, smiling brighter and with her hands occupied near her face. Instead, Alice waved her over, and as Lex got closer, she gasped as she saw the small kitten, standing on Hannah’s palms and it’s front legs resting on her chin, squeaking. Hannah was peering deep into its eyes and weirdly enough, the cat seemed to be doing the same thing.

“Hannah…” She put her hands to her sisters shoulders, watching as the cat turned to look at her, and reel back into a sitting position. “Miii?” It sounded like. Hannah shone up at her big sister. “You wanna hold her?”

Deb, Bill and Alice huffed, they hadn’t been given permission to hold her yet!

But Lex looked more concerned, turning to Bill who was the head of the household. “It’s not diseased, right?”

Hannah muttered, making Lex blink at her but her sister had already turned her head back to the cat, Alice moving her chair right so it touched Hannah’s, and getting another chance to wiggle her finger at the cat on the table, and see if it went for it. Bill slapped his arm on Lex’s shoulder and smiled wistfully. “You can afford to live a little Lex. Besides, it’s not like it’s got the virus.” Lex did hum at that, even if it was surprising coming from Bill to her. He ventured out to her sisters pet. “And she looks clean enough!”

When Ethan jumped down the stairs two at a time in the morning he was surprised to find everyone huddled around one corner of the table. And when he got up to it, he was even more surprised. He looked to the cat, to his friends and family, to upstairs at his bedroom again, to the door when he’d come in last night from a quick smoke session, and back to the cat, his finger following his eyes in the journey. Lex just rolled her eyes, picking up the cat under its arms, unlike Hannah who held it close to her chest in cupped hands, and she placed it immediately onto Ethans padded shoulder, Ethan and Hannah both freezing, but Lex’s hands cupped centimeters away from the cat, just in case. Thought it sat there perfectly fine. Ethans, body on auto pilot, very slowly and carefully sat down though. 

“Hannah found her.” Lex explained. Ethan nodded, glad to know this was at least real. “Uh huh.” The cat sprung and he flinched, only for it to play with his curls. Alice giggled and Lex snorted. “What? Is brave Ethan green afraid of a little kitten?”

“I ain’t scared of cats.” He told her menacingly, eyes the only thing moving towards her, and that’s when the cat started biting his ear. “Aah! Teeth teeth!” He motioned at it, Hannah coming over and swiftly picking her back up, purring over the “good kitten” and how “the good kitty doesn’t pull and tug”. 

Ethan rolled his shoulders, wiping at his ear. “God I’ve never seen her mothering over something so much.”

Lex just raised her eyebrows, coming close and Ethan thought she was about to kiss the top of his ear better, instead, she leaned in and whispered “Seems like she’s not the only pussy here.” Ethan was batting at her then.

Unfortunately, Bill came back with the bad news from the vets. Hannah had wanted to go too, except because of the lockdown she couldn’t, and Bill felt terrible when he had to inform all his kids that the cat, even as such a young kitten, had a chip and an owner. 

After the big kids gave up begging, and Bill was about to pick up the phone to call the owners, Hannah started crying. She told them all how the kitten wanted to stay with her, and how Webby must have wanted her to be a friend, also, how the cat would be happy here, if they all just stayed here forever, the cat could have a good life with them. They all could be happy.

Unfortunately the tone of everyone who tried to deal with her, gave away they weren’t changing their minds from the start, and Hannah ran into Alices room, locking the door with her cat, and crying into her hands, as the kitten stayed in her knees. 

“Meow?” It started nuzzling under the space between her calves and curled up knees, trying to lick at her tears before Hannah held her up, shaking. “Y-You meowed.”

There was a knock at the door and Hannah held her friend closer protectively, inching back on the bed. 

“Hannah?”

With a sigh, and a look down to her friend for confirmation, Hannah got up and opened the door, letting Lex inside. She sat quickly back in the bed, eyes just on the kitten she stroked and looked after.

Lex just stood there, against the closed door, and sighed herself. “Hannah…”

“I’m not giving her back. She- she’s got a new family now.” Hannah started with. Her cat was looking at her, she knew she was happy to stay too. Why was everyone else trying to ruin their happiness? Why did everyone want her to be alone? First Webby now this?

“But she already had a family, sweetie.” Lex tried. Silently she stalked over to the bed, pulling herself on top of it and trying to catch her younger sisters eyes. When that didn’t work, she knew she was mad, and holding back her own slightly dampening eyes, she turned her head to the baby animal her sister was so attached to instead. “Her last owners-“

“No owners.” Hannah started, looking up very seriously, Lex almost leant back a little, blinking. “No owners, only us as her family. We’re gonna be here to guide her… _protectors._

Realising her mistake, Lex bit her lip and nodded, letting Hannah calm herself again being consumed by the kitten, till her knees had stopped bouncing. Then Lex started her nodding again, trying to ease Hannah into the subject. “Well her original family said that when the mommy gave birth they had to give away some of her litter, while a few died.” She was soft on that point, noticing Hannah’s head turn just a little as that pricked her attention, but the thirteen year old kept her eyes, now watery, on the creature trying to unstitch her button.

“But they kept Angel, here,-“ Lex pointed to the kitten, that paid no attention to her finger and only Hannah’s dangling plait, as hannah looked down at the baby in shock at her name, “-because they wanted the mom to keep one, they wanted to mother to still have one child to look after, to make her feel better.” Lex finished. Feeling confident enough to finally touch her sister again, and when she put her arm around her shoulders and Hannah didn’t move away, she could breathe again. She couldn’t deal with her sister retreating, especially not like she’d been with the loss of ‘Webby’ the past few days. It hurt too much. She didn’t know if she needed her little sister, more than she needed her.

“But sometimes a new family is good.” Hannah tried desperately to explain to her older sister. Lex sighed, running her hands up and down her knees but looking down at Hannah, empathetic. Hannah shrugged, eyes down but confident at the kitty cat. “Bill is our new dad and he’s good.”

Lex stopped running her hands now. Instead, she just froze, well apart from looking down to her little sister with wide eyes and an even wider mouth. Then she closed it, upset. She’d had this conversation with Hannah before, when she told her she couldn’t say that in front of Bill… but she’d also refused to admit she believed the same thing, even though somehow Hannah already knew. The kid was smart. But Lex knew to make Hannah concede, she’d have to agree. “Yeah. He is.” She did not say which part she was agreeing to. Lex shuffled even closer, nudging Hannah’s knee with her own, voice a bit croaky, but strong. “But would you wanna get fostered into a new family, outside this home?”

Hannah didn’t need to think on it. She shook her head hard. “No.” Her pigtails flew and the cats eyes watched fiercely.

”Exactly. That’s her real family banana.” Lex moved her hand up and stroked Hannahs fringe, both Foster sisters sighing in unison. Lex gave a half hearted shrug. “And sometimes people, and cats-“ she stroked its head with a little pat of her finger, the cat melting under her touch, “-they get that, first shot.”

“But what if she needed a second shot, like us?” Hannah asked up at her desperately, voice cracking as she knew she was losing now. But she hadn’t given up hope just yet.

And God if looking into those eyes didn’t make Lex just what to melt. But she knew what was right. She knew what was gonna happen anyway. She thought on it for a second, always trying to be the best big sister for Hannah, one someone as special as her deserved. “Well what does Angel say?”

Looking down, the cat switched from looking between the two sisters like a ping pong match, only meowing as Hannah lifted her up carefully into her hands, swiping at her and yowling to start some play. Until, Hannah looked directly into her eyes. Both looked into each other’s eyes for a long time, unblinking, and there was something about it, something spiritual that even Lex felt affected just watching it. Then, when Hannah pulled back, her blink set off a wave of tears. “Sh-she wants her mom.” Bursting into tears, Hannah leant into Lex’s shoulders, who dragged her there in the hug, and she cried. They sobbed and spilt and Lex held her close but not tight, swaying back to front but not side to side. All the while the cat nuzzled under Hannah’s chin, as Hannah held her up to her chest sadly.

Then a few moments in, when Hannah hadn’t stopped crying, eyes screwed from pain but not enough to block them, then, the cat batted Lex’s cheek. “Ow!” Lex flinched away on instinct, calling out half playfully as her hands still stayed wrapped around her baby sister, shaking her loose hair behind her ears that Bill had cut just yesterday. She played with Hannah’s new fringe too, nothing different than her sister usually liked. “She thinks I’m attacking you.” She joked with an easier smile, just nothing too big to stay sensitive.

Hannah shook her head, digging under Angels chin. “No you’re a protector.”

Lex felt like she’d heard that before, but she was too focused on trying to keep it light to really think about it. She just leant back her head, and smirked. “Oh yeah? Are you sure she’s not wrong?” Lex carefully took the kitten from Hannah’s shaky hands and scooped it onto the desk, and as soon as her hands were free, she attacked Hannah onto the bed with waggly tickly fingers. Both Foster sisters were laying side by side on the bed, laughing and yelling until Hannah was crying for a different reason, trying half heartedly to push Lex’s hands away that always knew just where to attack, begging “Stop stop stop!!!” But actually not really wishing her to.

The household finally took their masks off as the other family left, a carrier filled with a large cat, and her baby Angel, bobbing away towards the car. Luckily even with restrictions, they’d been kind enough to let Hannah say hello to the mother, let her get a vibe, and let the mother get a sniff, and rub her head under Hannah’s palm, purring so lightly it made Hannah’s hand tickle for seconds afterwards as she jumped away.

Luckily Hannah was dealing with the situation better than anyone had thought after yesterday, and while Lex had her arms around Hannah’s shoulders, hugging her and swaying atop her head, Bill had his hands on Lex's praising her.

God she’d cried yesterday when he told her how proud he was of her last night. Not just for being a good big sister yesterday, but the best for the past thirteen years.

Bill pat her knowing she still appreciated the same today. Then, he turned his attention not only to Hannah, but to the rest of the heartbroken teens. Even Alice was teary, Deb was pouting, and even Ethan was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and looking only to his feet. Bill was gonna miss that little kit too. But the kids around here were also more than enough to fuel his heart for decades. He ran his thumb across the parting of Hannah’s hair fondly, her looking up even fonder, and he didn’t move when she wrapped her arms around his waist and nuzzled her chin into his side and stayed there. Even as he felt like he was about to break.

“Well gang, unfortunately, that was one of life’s sorrows, we can’t keep the cat.” Not that the kids needed reminding, they all looked to a different place now, yet still no ones eyes. Bill, sensing the discomfort, changed it up a little too and played with the end of Hannah’s pigtail, between his thumb and his forefinger. “The cats back with her old family. 

All the kids were accustomed to that dad voice by now, they all looked into his eyes then.

Bill’s eyes went straight to the youngest and most affected by this however, voice soft as always. “Maybe one day when you’re less heartbroken-“

”No one can replace her.” Hannah spoke up, still upset but sure her choice was the right one now. She’d miss her new friend though. Why did they always have to leave her? She looked around at the room then though. At least she had them, her family.

Bill nodded in agreement to what she said, nodding to all of his kids. “Yeah, of course they can’t. But one day, if you guys feel better and wanted, we could all go into a shelter together and look at the puppies.”

Living in a house with five teens you’d think Bill had experienced chaos, or at least a loud energetic room before. Clearly not until this moment. In that moment, everyone erupted.

“YEAH PUPPY!”

”PUPPIES?!”

“A BABY!”

“WHAT!?”

“PUPPY PUPPY…!”

“PUPPY PUPPY PUPPY...!!!” They all chanted, even Hannah while bouncing her knees, and then even Bill. They’d never choreographed a high five between six of them but in that sort of chaotic circle they’d gotten themselves into whilst chanting, it kinda worked.

What no one mentioned, was the fact that them all agreeing to get a puppy together in the long run, made it sound like those kids would all be staying there a lot longer than ‘till the virus all blows over’...

Tonight was another night where Hannah was sleeping alone in the spare room, and the four older teens had Alice's room, except a night where they were all sober.

Lex and Ethan had won the bed tonight, but Alice was happy enough on the mattress her dad had bought, as she was with Deb. Well, kind of with her. Deb had fallen asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, which faced the foot of the higher up proper bed, meanwhile Alice had her headphones in. Her phone screen was off, but she wasn’t sleepy enough yet. Her eyes were closed and she was just gonna try and sleep, she wouldn’t want to disturb Ethan and Lex after all, since they didn’t have any phone lights on. But thinking about them, made Alice's senses susceptible to what was going on behind her. And once she knew she couldn’t stop perceiving. Alice could just hear the wet smacking sounds of their lips, and now she was aware of them she could tell they were deep, and had been clearly going on for a while.

Very subtly, Alice reached for her earphones that were, thank God, close by her pillow, and stuck them in, keeping her phone screen as dark as possible to not make the situation even more awkward, and moved onto an album she’d been meaning to listen to. So she could really try and focus on the words.

But then she started to hear the moans.

Alice turned her head sharply on her pillow to face the ceiling, eyes screwed shut from terror though, and whisper hissed “Can you two be quiet!!”

Luckily, apart from Alices abrupt huffing, nothing followed but silence.

Alice rolled back over, pouting, her headphones falling out because they were uncomfortable and she rolled till she was facing Debs back, cuddling her girlfriend to her. Deb moaned in her sleep, but at least it was pure. Unlike those two. Alice just wanted to sleep next to her girlfriend, not with her, in peace. She just didn’t know how much she was gonna get, taking into account how horny her two other friends were.

Maybe this should be a night where her and Deb sneak into the other room and let a couple stay alone, Ethan and Lex did the same for them sometimes.

She was always thankful for it. They gave her and Deb some privacy in the bedroom, which was hard to get. Actually privacy anywhere in the home was hard to get.

Though she thought Hannah liked it, just the three of them, like old times, when her and Deb wanted to make out and… stuff. It was kinda a deal between the couples. Although sometimes Hannah did just want Lex, which everyone got and respected, Lex didn’t mind taking care of her sister, like she always had done. Those nights it was Ethan her and Deb together. There were always weird sleeping arrangements when it was different mix ups, and with five of them and two rooms the mix ups could be weird sometimes.

One time Ethan was fed up of being bullied for being a boy, and went to crash in Alice's room where Hannah was, while the two rudely made fun of him and laughed together through the wall.

And when Alice went through that sleepwalking phase oh boy. She was literally locked out from the other four for the two weeks.

Ethan and Deb had somehow both caught a sickness no one else had, definitely not pandemic related thank God, and not at all serious, but slightly annoying. While those two did love getting pampered and cooed over and waited on by Bill, and oh the worry that man gave, they didn’t like being ‘quarantined’ in their own household, even though they’d definitely be doing the same to their other friends. It was only a quarantine at bedtime but still. But when Ethan and Deb woke up every half hour between them, having to blow their nose or throw up or run to the toilet… they got Alice, Hannah and Lex wanting a peaceful night's sleep in one room.

The night Ethan left to sleep at the foot of Bill’s bed in resistance was a fun one too, not exactly for the older man waking up at 7am with a heart attack, but fun.

Everyone had been mad at Alice and Ethan for ‘cheating’ on monopoly which they both adamantly denied. Ethan was the only one who knew it though. They had to spend the night in the dog house. Jokes on the others though because they had a midnight feast all to themselves.

When Alice and Hannah both got a panic attack off the same tree trunk snapping off in the storm, they stayed with Lex looking after them, because Alice couldn’t really deal with a crowd and Hannah needed her sister, while Ethan and Deb made themselves comfy, arguing over who got the ‘foot bed’ for two hours till they both collapsed on it from pure exhaustion together.

One time with that Alice/Ethan/Deb formation, Alice woke up to Ethan cuddling her back, his arms protectively around her body, and his leg hanging off the wide bed. And by his foot, Deb, snoring loudly on the floor where she hadn’t been before, to the side of the bed where no mattress was. Ethan was lightly snoring into her ears, peacefully fast asleep and unaware in a cross between a teddy bear hold and jetpacking with his arms. And when Alice tried to wriggle to get a better look at Deb on the other side of the bed, and Ethan squeezed her close with an unconscious grumble in his hold, Alice knew the culprit, laughing at his leg that twitched hanging, and her poor girlfriend who had been kicked off, and stayed unconscious… She hoped she hadn’t hit her head. Ethan was stuck in the middle originally though, because Bill walked in to say goodnight, and they adhered to the ‘no couples right next to each other' rule in front of him, but were all too tired to move back once he left.

Before they had all fallen asleep, Ethan had wrapped Alice under his arm, who wriggled with his slightly sweaty sleep shirt, as he grinned at Deb and kept her girlfriends chin under his arm. “Alice is mine now.” He teased them both “She’s warm and I need time with my bff!”

Alice tried wriggling again, and Ethan just cuddled her with both arms, his foot kicking Debs legs back, as she tried to kick him too, stubbornly but tiredly. “Hey I’m stopping you two bozos kissing with me in the bed with y’all, and from you two breaking Bill’s rules!” He cheered, happy to be a suck up for Bill was like his running joke, though he actually loved the man more than the joke.

And Alice, _respecting_ Ethans right to not be in the same bed as people making out, had just collapsed against her best friend, too tired to argue and, to his credit as he boasted to everyone, he probably was the best hugger. Joint with her dad of course. Ethan seemed to smoothen over her hugging him back too, though he kept his eyes and stuck out grin on a squinting Deb. “She’s just so much like a cuddly toy!”

Deb punched his chest, where Alice wasn’t hugging back, slowly and tiredly with her fist, closing her eyes and whining against her pillow. Guess she’d go another day without holding her girlfriend at night. God how did she used to do this every night? She just scoffed. “Well that’s homophobic.” She muttered.

Ethan tiredly hit her shoulder back. “I’m lgbt jackass.”

Alice looked up from her side of the bed and was inching dangerously close to full out laying on his chest. “You can be lgbt and also homophobic.”

“GOODNIGHT.” Ethan told her, a bit loud and stern at being called out for nothing right before his beauty sleep, before his face comedically quickly softened, coming down and whacking a goodnight kiss on her forehead. She closed her eyes. Feeling him lean over to Deb, Alice heard the whacks of hands, feeling one of Ethans arms leave her to whack back. She didn’t know who won the fight, having already fallen asleep by then, yet she presumed Deb was still in the bed before the two fell asleep. Just not anymore.

That was nice to think about. They were nice, or at least funny times at nighttime, respectful at times too. But it had been an hour with her thinking so hard for brain bleach, she’d forgotten to fall asleep. And that’s when she began to hear her bed squeaking.

It wasn’t awkward if you didn’t look anyone in the eye, and bolting uptight, walking a zombie Deb to Hannah’s room while blindly whisper hissing for Ethan and Lex to use the mattress and not _her bed this time,_ whilst reminding them the condoms were in the top drawer, she helped a sleepwalking Deb onto the spare room mattress, trying not to wake poor Hannah as without earphones the sounds from the wall over would start to get bad, she cuddled with her sleeping girlfriend, begging her dad not to wake, earphones blaring but with acute awareness of her girlfriend and the thirteen year old in the room, and Alice forced herself to go to sleep, in a household with her friends and father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Go follow my tumblr for this account: @ourstarkidcrazyuniverse :-D
> 
> Woohoo! FINALLY. 21+k words and I’m finally done, I have been working on this forever. Also sorry about the unexpected break I just have and continue to be extremely busy with uni work before during and after the Christmas holiday but I finally have been able to complete this!
> 
> There is a third instalment in the drafts for this series too!
> 
> Sorry abt the wait but I’ve got a few more weeks of hardcore work but I want y’all to know I haven’t left aha. Can’t wait till I get more time for serious writing sessions aha, hopefully soon now!
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading and please please leave all thoughts and comments as I read them all!  
> And as always, stay safe y’all 💕

**Author's Note:**

> Go follow my tumblr for this account: @ourstarkidcrazyuniverse :-D
> 
> (Oh exactly 6k words?? We love that)  
> Another quarantine one! I hope y’all like the shenanigans of these lot bc I have stuff planned for them all being locked in a house together which is probs a reason this came out so quickly but please leave some comments if you’d like that bc I’m excited for what I have planned! And please leave a comment abt this in general if y’all have anything lol it rly gives me smth to look forward to in this quarantine and esp helps to motivate me in writing for y’all!!  
> Apart from that I rly hope this was okay and you enjoyed!  
> And as always, stay safe y’all 💕


End file.
